For My Childhood
by the mythologist
Summary: Paying my respects to a favored show of my childhood: The Rocket Gang plus an OC in high school; growing, changing, and falling into what just might be love or absolute revulsion, you never know. M for cursing, more delicious actions later perhaps :O
1. Prologue: You can DO that?

**Prologue: "You can DO that?"**

**(Why are they **_**leaving**_** me?)**

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It was going to be a long summer. Otto Rocket sighed as he watched the waves lap against the shore, melodious and understated, and tried not to think about what he was going to do with himself for a whole month. Usually the answer was easy – this was summer in Ocean Shores, and it was the perfect time for hanging out with his gang (his sister Reggie, best friend Twister, and Sam, the resident Squid) at Madtown, the Shack, and on the waves. Sadly, this summer was different.

They had known early on that Sam was traveling abroad with his parents this summer (explaining what that meant to Twister had taken the better part of a week) and would therefore be out for the count in terms of hang time. It also meant that their legendary 4-man hockey team would be out of action for the summer, but as Sam was the starting goalie for an adult recreational league as well, they had already planned around this. They would merely move their season from summer to the winter leagues.

Reggie, more surprisingly, had decided to cut town this summer as well. She was attending an innovative arts program which combined the efforts of writers and artists to cover a sister program directed towards musicians, dancers, and actors. It was a massive program, covering almost all aspects of entertainment, in an effort to bridge the gap between the many genres. It was an amazing opportunity – the selection process was extremely rigorous, and one had to display a certain amount of greatness to gain entrance. Entering her senior year in high school, and hoping to be a journalist (The 'Zine had ousted the school newspaper in popularity about halfway through her freshman year) Reggie was determined to make the best of this opportunity, even though she was leaving behind her three best friends for a little over a month.

Yet it was Twister's defection that surprised them all.

The four of them (it was about a week before Sam would leave) had been sitting on the pier chatting and joking about nothing much (the Shoobies had infested the beaches) and generally enjoying the beauty of the sun setting over the ocean when Reggie had broken the news about her making it into the Young Artists of The Future program. After she had imparted the seriousness of the honor to them, congratulations were paramount. Sam grasped the importance first.

"Way to go Reggie! I know how nervous you were about sending in the application…well done."

"Nervous? Rocket girl? No way – her 'Zine is amazing! Of course she'd get in." Reggie, already blushing with pride and happiness smiled even more – say what you will about Twister's lack of intelligence, a sweeter and more loyal friend could not be found.

"Of course, she's my sis. That's how the Rockets do." Otto smiled at his older sister. "Rocket girl kicks ass."

As a tribute to their shared childhood, they stuck their hands together for a celebratory woogie. Otto leaned back on his elbows, his dreads shifting as he leaned his head back.

"Well I guess there's no helping it…it's just me and Twist this summer…"

When Twister's emphatic agreement was not voiced, Otto turned over onto his stomach to see what Reg and Sam already had – Twister nervously tugging the reddish-blonde tuft of hair sticking out from underneath his infamous hat.

"_Right _Twist?"

"Uhhh…" Slowly and sheepishly, Twister pulled out an envelope from his back pocket. It was well worn; a testament of Twister's rough treatment of it, and the sender was the Young Artists of The Future program.

His three friends stared at him, too shocked to make a sound. It was Sam who found his voice first.

"Twister?"

Twister looked at him sadly.

"Um, did you uh…Did you apply to the YAF program too?"

Twister nodded morosely.

"And um…you didn't uh…you didn't make it in, did you?"

Twister covered his face with his hands.

Reggie, Otto and Sam all stated babbling at once, indiscernibly.

"WHAT?! You applied too? Why didn't you tell me?...Twist no. You can't ice this summer and leave me here! AGHHHH!...You filled out an application? All by yourself? You can DO that?!"

Twister stood up suddenly, clutching the envelope in one hand, determination written on his face.

"Ok ok- chill out, dudes! Yeah I did it. Mrs. Cork helped me fill it out and basically threatened to fail me if I didn't! I never thought I'd make it in, ok?! And besides…" He gestured helplessly at Reggie. "Reggie's told us so much about it, and how great it is…and I kinda wanna go, ok? Please, don't malfunction, Otto man…If I don't go to this, I can't be the best filmographer ever and then I can't record your stunts so _please_ don't be tweaked…"

Seeing the storm brewing on her younger brother's face, Reggie stepped in. "Twist…this is great. I mean, the film program is _so hard _to make it into, and you did it! We were just a little surprised, is all. Congratulations." With a big smile, she too stood up and gave him the least awkward hug she could manage. He had always been tall for his age, and now at 16 he stood almost 6'4" to her 5'7". Sam got up to, and clapped him on the back.

"Yeah man, great job to you too. Sorry I was a bit harsh on you…I'll be excited to see what you and Reg come up with this summer."

"Thanks, Squid. You have fun with the broads. Don't bring any back though. I can't handle any more girls." Ok, so Twister still didn't exactly get what the term "abroad" meant. And his mother's habit of bringing over "nice Spanish girls" for Twister to potentially hit it off with had developed into a phobia of…well, nearly every girl he knew. Yet at any rate, he at least understood Sam was going to be out of the country, speaking something other than English. Reg looked at Sam, stifling amusement. God bless Twister.

They all looked down at Otto, still sitting down on the pier. His face was closed off, and his eyes were dark – Reggie had seen trouble coming, and hoped to head it off at the pass but Otto was Otto, and he almost never denied his passions.

"Yeah…good job bro." His voice cracked, but that was the only indication of his displeasure. Maybe for once, Otto had decided to be supportive towards his best bro.

"You mean it?" Twister snapped back to chipper with his characteristic straightforwardness. If he had a tail, it would have been wagging.

"Yeah dude. I'll just spend this summer reaching all new heights of greatness so that your talents aren't wasted." He paused, looking at his sister. "And besides, you can scare off all the lame-o's that try to hit on Reggie."

"_Otto_."

Laughing and bickering, the four friends headed back to the Shack, and to the rest of their summer together, which was over far too soon.

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**Things that the author would like to tell you: **Welllll hellllllloooooo everyone. I realize that I just wrote on my profile that I have issues with finishing, uh, anything, but I have about 8 more chapters of this baby left to go update (let alone finish). Please, stare not in amazement or verbally chastise me but accept what I give you, even if it is a) not about manga and b) very likely crap. In my defense, I have not watched this show since I was 12 (to put that in perspective – I'm now 20, the same age as the characters would have been had they been allowed to grow up. *Shivers) and perhaps because I don't feel bound by having them act totally in character (I DO heartily apologize for the inaccuracy of their lingo…I remember them speaking very differently than I did and I'm not sure how to recreate that without reading all the fanfiction on them…all over again :P) I might be able to finish it. If you were able to read that sentence, I salute you, and present you with le next chapter.

Oh, one more thing. Title is bold and at the top of the page (well done!) buuuuut I have a bit of a surprise this time. Directly underneath it, in the paranthesis is a thought connected to one (or more) characters. Never explicitly stated, like the title, but interesting nonetheless. Well ok _I_ thought it was cool but never mind then.


	2. Ch1: Wisdom,Space Cadets, Clothes?

**Chapter 1: Hidden Wisdom/Space Cadets/Wait, Why Did They Take My Clothes? **

**(Why does my camera like looking at you so much?)**

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Raymundo had gone to pick up his daughter and Twister early in the morning, so Tito held down the fort while chatting with a twitchy Otto, plainly impatient for his sister and best friend to get back (it had been a whole month, after all). Otto and Reggie's father, Raymond (deemed Raymundo by all and sundry) and his best friend Tito held their operations at the Shack, acknowledged to serve the best food around. Possessors of parental guidance, general wisdom, and occasional hilarity, Tito and Raymundo were beginning to get on in age, but that didn't lessen their connection with the four teens. Not that that meant they would always listen to them.

"Otto. It is as the ancient Hawaiians always said: _He who twitches loses sight of balance."_

"…_Huh_? How can you lose sight of something you can't see in the first place?"

Tito sighed. How come no one understood his wisdom here? "It means calm down, little brudda. Reggie and Twister will be home soon. Then your reign of terror can begin again."

Otto spun around in his chair (nearly knocking his knees on the counter) mumbling a little to himself. Tito did not ask him to clarify. Otto had been surprisingly good about Twister's being gone all summer – with Reggie, no less. Raymundo was hopeful that it was a sign of Otto's latent maturity, but Tito felt a little uneasy. It was just too unlike Otto to take defeat this gracefully.

* * *

"Hey Reggie! Give the camera some love, rocket girl."

Reggie grinned and half-heartedly swatted Twister away, being careful not to accidentally hit the camera he had pointed at her. They were walking through the airport to meet Raymundo and Twister had decided this was an excellent time for filming, even though they were standing less than a foot apart from each other.

"C'mon, Twist. Haven't you had enough filming for a little while?" She laughed. "And I'm not even doing anything exciting. Just wait 'til we get home…then we can board, and surf, and drive cars… "

"No way, Reg. I have to film _everything._ I have to practice all the techniques they taught me! Anyways. This is kind of like a documentary, you know? _Coming Home to Ocean Shores_." Twister's radio-announcer voice never failed to make Reggie laugh. Maybe it was the unexpected pleasure of hearing Twister emphasize his faint Spanish accent, or maybe (probably) it was the silly face that inevitably accompanied it. Whatever the reason, Reg was glad to see him back to his normal self. The first week at YAF had been rough – in order to bring the attendants of the two programs together, Twister and Reggie had lived with musicians. While Reggie's roommate Ell had been awesome (the three had hung out constantly, especially after Ell revealed she had transferred to Ocean Shores High School before attending the program) Twister's roommate Laurence was a pretentious dick that didn't know the meaning of "Practice until 3 am in our bedroom one more time and I will seriously hurt you." At least until Twister made good on his threat.

Yet in all, they had both had the time of their lives. They both studied under masters of their crafts (Reggie with Dr. Lorraine McNeely Professor of Journalism at --------, Twister with Daniel Terry, a legend in filming) and had grown noticeably. For once in her life Reggie had been surrounded by people as passionate and as talented as her, and Twister recognized as not simply runner up to his best friend, but an extremely gifted artist. The change that worked in them was noticeable, but not easily defined. Twister, while still retaining his childlike wonder and reasoning process (what Ell fondly described as a 'space cadet') had somehow managed to incorporate a sense of purpose and acquired a confidence which could never have blossomed under Otto's influence. For Reggie it was simpler. She knew now that this was what she wanted to do with her life, and that she could succeed at it. The knowledge empowered her, and made returning to high school seem superfluous, even as she realized the importance of finishing strong.

She looked up at Twister (_damn but he was so _tall_ no one else in his family is like that)_ and was about to start poking him to make him put the camera away (neither saw fit to question their increase in physical intimacy over the last month) when she saw her father out of the corner of her eye. All her adult-like thoughts and aspirations flew out her mind as she found herself running to her father. Twister chuckled as he zoomed in to catch their loving reunion. She had acted oddly adult-like and kind of distant that first week – although that he didn't really blame her for, as the journalism program had been almost as intense as the film program. She didn't ignore him or anything, they ate all their meals together and all, but she didn't want to go on adventures with him. Like his plan to string Laurence's boxers up the flagpole, or to throw his sloppy joe at the head of the lame-o who wouldn't leave Reggie alone. Well, he had almost gotten away with that one. The closest they came to hanging out was when he would (out of lonely boredom at first, but then out of genuine enjoyment) invade Reggie and Ell's room, and make them laugh with his antics.

For the first week, at least. That was before the whole camp seemed to realize overnight that Twister wasn't just a major space cadet (whose lack of film savvy seemed to justify public ridicule) but a filming prodigy as well. Ell had gone to see his presentation at the end of the first week (Reggie had to give hers an hour later, which Ell ended up watching as well) and had come back visibly shaken – Twister was good. As she had told Reg later that evening, Twister wasn't just good, he was quite possibly the best. Reggie had smiled when Ell told her that. Partly because she knew it was good for Twister to be the best at something that Otto could never interfere with, but also because she was happy for him. Of course, her smile grew even wider when Twister ran into their room later that evening, bounding like a boy and laughing like a loon. His joy was infectious. He still had (but was losing fast) the puppy-like cuteness that drew others to him and subtly influenced their mood. In its place was manhood, pure and simple, and this was the summer it came upon him. Even Reggie had to admit there was something different about Twister – something that spoke of sporadic stomach flutters and occasional eye-drifts to where he was lounging.

For the other girls however, it meant a full-on attraction to Twister. It was like a return to kindergarten when the girls would chase him and Otto during recess, except these girls chased with their eyes, hands, and flirtatious ways. It was a good thing Twister was as oblivious (and afraid of females) as he was, and that Reggie was always there with him. It took a couple days of jealous accusations and an explanation from Ell ("Look. Twister is an attractive male, you're an attractive female who is _close_ to him, and you're wondering why the hell they took your clothes when you were in the shower? Reggie, please") to make her realize that Twister was no longer an 11 year old boy, but a 16 year old one, and that desire apparently works in mysterious ways. Needless to say, Twist had been a fixture in her room after that, if only to save his remaining innocence, if not a drama-free summer. It had died down eventually, at least.

Twister put away his camera as he approached Raymundo and Reggie, foreseeing the bone-crushing hug Raymundo gave him just in time.

"Hey…(_gasp) _Raymundo…"

"God it's good you two are home. It just doesn't feel like Ocean Shores without you. Tito has been moping for weeks…"

"Hey, thanks Raymundo. How is Otto? Is he totally tearing up the place?"

"Yeah, dad. 'Cuz we all know Rocket boy doesn't know _how_ to mope." Reggie and Twister laughed a little at this, knowing full well Otto and his often-unpredictable mood swings.

Raymundo shook his head as Twist and Reg continued to laugh and joke around, all the way back to the car. He had missed his princess. It was good they were home.

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Well are you reading it? Are you _enjoying_ it? Do you know who's thinking what? Ok it is not that exciting yet but let me tell you. At least I write in sentences. (Gasp she did NOT just go there oh yessss she did.)

I am so thankful no one here knows who I am, sometimes. I mean, damn. I'd be so dead.


	3. Ch2: Boxers,Windows,Hating Fangirls Hard

**Chapter 2: Twister's boxers/Betwixt the Window and Mr. Rocket/Hating Fangirls Hard**

**(I should never have even **_**looked**_** at you)**

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Still don't own it

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It was the first day of school, and Twister Rodriguez was more upset than the situation called for - school was one level of hell, but his best friend flaking out on him _again (_what seemed to be the theme of this summer since he and Reggie got home) was another entirely. He sighed as he shut his locker, hoping he had all his books for the day. At least Ell was here. Twister brightened up. She had only arrived a couple days ago, and with all the fuss she hadn't even met Otto yet. Maybe she would talk some sense into him? She always had for Twister…she was good at being neutral and calm (which Reggie called having the patience of a saint) and could probably help with the…the situation between his best bro and…well. _Everyone._

The day had begun with a phone call (fortuitous in one way, waking him up as his parents were out of the house helping Lars move into his college dorm room and otherwise he might have missed the first day entirely).

"Hi, this is Reggie…may I speak to Twister please?"

"Mleargh."

A pause.

"Twist?"

"Unhhhhhhhhhh _ sí. Buenos días_ _Reggie_."

Reggie snorted. She had discovered over the summer that when extremely tired, angry, or intoxicated, Twister tended to revert back to Spanish. It was thankful that she had a working knowledge of the language.

"_Buenos días, _Twister. But I'm looking for Otto, is he already over there?"

It was a long-standing tradition for Otto and Reggie to meet at Twist's house and make the trek to school together. A sudden feeling of unease woke Twist up quickly.

"_No sé_… Oh, uh sorry I don't know. I don't think so. _Otto!"_

Reggie covered her ears and shrieked. Twister had forgotten to take the phone away from his mouth when he yelled for her younger brother.

"_Twister!"_

_ "_Sorry Reggie. Nope, he's not here." He thought for a moment. "Did you look in the bathroom?"

"Yeah I looked over the whole house Twist…oh well. I'll just head over, we shouldn't be late for our first day."

"First day? Of what?"

"Twister…school starts today, remember?"

Twister froze. He looked down at himself, clad only in boxers amidst the heavy covering of tousled blankets and sheets.

"Awww _maldita sea!_"

Reggie snorted. Aww damn, indeed. He probably wasn't even out of bed yet. "Well Twist you have about 2 minutes to get ready…I'll walk really slow." She laughed again as she heard Twist make a lot of sudden movement (did he _fall_ out of bed?) and belatedly remember to turn off the phone. It was a good thing that Laurence was such a stickler for timing (and practiced at 8:30 am sharp every day) otherwise Twister would have been done for this summer at camp.

But other matters were foremost on her mind. Where was Rocket Boy?

* * *

Ell breathed in deeply as she unconsciously squared her shoulders and walked through the door of her first class of the day, English. Twister and Reggie had told her enough about Ocean Shores, but they couldn't have prepared her for high school – even if she had told them she hadn't ever been. She had been home schooled since she was 12, traveling around with her father, who was now in Antarctica experimenting on only god knew what. She certainly didn't want to. Her cello wouldn't last in those temperatures, and her potential career as anything other than a penguin would have been seriously diminished, so she came to America instead. She was living with her Aunt Mabel until he was done. Or rather, that was what she was _supposed_ to be doing. Her Aunt Mabel had, in a fit of what seemed to be madness, apparently gone off to live among the gypsies in the Czech Republic, and Ell was living alone in her apartment rather illegally, until December. Then it wouldn't really matter anymore.

Although she didn't know it, Ell was rather ill equipped to handle high school. She was intelligent, attractive in a striking-rather-than-cute sort of way, and inclined to humor, but she possessed a sense of worldliness (gained from traveling around with her father to many different countries), and was unconsciously intimidating as she was inclined to adopt a rather fierce look on her face when nervous, such as now. She was also new in the 11th grade, something that would be rather difficult for anyone to pull off.

She had been on the later side of on time when reaching the classroom, so she had been unable to talk to the teacher beforehand on the subject of her name. The man was on the further side of 50, and no-nonsense was written on his stern face. Ell knew she might be in trouble.

"All right class, settle down. I am your English Teacher, Mr. Murdoch. You might have heard a thing or two about me and let me assure you, they are all true." There were scattered groans from among the class, some sitting in desks, but most (like Ell) still standing. "First of which is the matter of my seating chart. We will begin with Tamora Prydain, Murphy Lancaster, Cale Porter-"

The door, scant inches away from hitting Ell, flew open and what seemed to be a dreadlocked streak of dark energy (well, as dark as Ell was fair) tumbled into the classroom. The reason for the tumble was the leg of the desk closest to the door that had caught the edge of the boy's skateboard, resulting in the fall.

"Ah, Mr. Rocket. How good of you to join the class."

Ell's eyebrows raised. _That_ was Reggie's brother?

Shaking his head as he got up (Ell had never seen anyone with dreadlocks before, let alone that peculiar shade of auburn red) he stood at about Ell's height, 5'9". He was far tanner than Reggie, with what looked like dark eyes behind wrap-around green tinted glasses. He had an earring in his left ear.

He shrugged as he retrieved his skateboard. "Penh, no problem dude."

Several of the girls in the class tittered at his cocky attitude. Ell very carefully kept herself from rolling her eyes.

"Well Mr. Rocket. We were just going over the seating chart. You will sit in the back…right in front of my desk."

Otto shrugged again and headed to the back, flashing a grin to a gaggle of girls as he went. This time, Ell couldn't help but let her eyes roll. Apparently, it attracted Mr. Murdoch's attention.

"And who you might you be?"

Ell straightened up, cursing herself for letting her annoyance show.

"Ell Bryndis." She was careful not to let any trace of accent show. Usually she didn't even need to think about it, but for whatever reason it tended to pop up during the most annoying (and often the most official) circumstances. "I transferred over the summer."

"Ah, I see." Mr. Murdoch looked down at his list of names. "Well I don't see your name on here…"

"It's not spelled the way it sounds." Goddammit, why had the whole damn room gone silent? Well, silent except for the flirting going on in the back of the room. Ell walked over the to the teacher, being careful not to get too close, and pointed to the name three from the top.

"That's me. It's just easier to go by Ell Bryndis."

Mr. Murdoch looked at her for a moment, seeing her seriousness.

"Well Miss Bryndis," (Ell fought down the instinctive shudder that all her people do when addressed as such) "your seat is also in the back. Betwixt the window and Mr. Rocket."

Ell made her way to the back, ignoring the curious stares of her classmates. Why had she been so late? If she hadn't, she could have gotten this goddamn name lotsey out of the way and no one would have anything to be curious about. It was stupid anyway. It wasn't like she was lying or anything.

The person on the other side of Otto was a nubile young thing named Emma Hammond. Well, she was supposed to be on the other side – in actuality, she was practically on Otto's lap by the time Ell got to her seat. Feeling incredibly awkward, Ell averted her eyes, and began to look out the window, missing Otto's curious (albeit guarded) glance in her direction.

This was going to be a ridiculously long year.

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By the time lunch rolled around, Reggie knew something was seriously wrong. First of all, she hadn't seen Sam all day, even though they had signed up for several classes together. Secondly, a couple of love struck girls in the bathroom had set her mood from bad to God-I-Wish-I-Could-Fight-Them. Most of their attention had been lavished on Otto (who, from what she could gather, had enacted a rather unconventional start to his first day of school by skateboarding into his first hour) but when talk moved to Twister, Reggie swung open the door of her stall rather loudly (of course an instinctive move from this summer, when she had to protect Twister from all the rabid fangirls out there) which ended conversation fairly quickly. Girls talking about Otto never really bothered her – he had never shown real interest in a girl before, or in anything that he couldn't perform extreme sports on. Twister on the other hand…well who knew what would happen to that boy if girls started hitting on him!

But the last straw was meeting Ell in the cafeteria. Ell tried not to look relieved as Reggie smiled and waved her over to a table.

"Hey, how was your first day here?"

"Ahh…disorienting…" Ell gave a soft chuckle. "I've never been in this kind of situation before. It's uh…interesting."

Before Reggie could ask for clarification, a distraught Twister slammed himself down at the table next to El (whose back was facing the rest of the cafeteria).

"Uh…Twist?"

"Hide me! They're after me!"

Reg's eyes widened. The girls were coming for him _already?_ Well she wasn't going to stand for this ridiculous-

"Who, Twist?" Ell broke her reverie with a wide-eyed question.

"Otto's fan club…they know I'm his best bro and are trying to make him notice me or them or I don't know!" He left off with a wail, and Ell grimaced. Honestly, WHAT was his appeal? But Reg missed all of this.

"His…_His fan club?"_

The italics in her voice made her two friends pay attention. Ell shared a nervous glance with Twister, still hunched in his seat, hiding his hat with his hands.

"Well if it's any consolation, I don't think the fan club will get very far…I mean, he seemed pretty happy with just Emma this morning. I mean, she was on his-"

Reggie stood up abruptly, breaking off before Ell could further dig herself further into the hole. Without asking for further clarification, she strode off in the direction of her younger brother who had just entered the lunchroom, surrounded by several girls and a few guys who just last year he had dubbed "Shoobie wannabes."

"Rocket boy! A word."

A path cleared. Reggie's temper was semi-legendary, even if only ever directed at Otto, and occasionally Twister.

"Uh, yeah? What's wrong Reg, you look pretty tweaked."

"Pretty tweaked? What's this I hear about you in English class? Something about a girl? IN CLASS?"

Otto's eyes shifted infinitesimally over to Ell, who had come up with Twister, in case they were needed for damage control. He pitched his voice low, so that his fans (who had backed up several feet in case of disaster) couldn't hear.

"Geez Reg what's _your_ malfunction? It wasn't important or anything – just a girl trying to tell me how she feels instead of being… a jealous bitch about it." He paused for a moment, while Reggie, completely confused, looked back to where he was now pointedly staring, at Ell.

"What?"

He glared at her a moment longer, then turned his attention back to Reggie. "Not your business what I do with girls, Regina. Just like I have no say in your lame-o choice of friends."

Ell's eyebrows raised. That _bastard._ Twister looked from girl to girl, not knowing which one would attempt to whomp Otto first. Fortunately, Reggie was sputtering with rage, and Ell was too far away to easily get her hands around his neck.

"Let's go. Twist. You coming? A couple of us are going off campus for lunch. Leave the girls and let's go." Otto turned his back without waiting for a response.

Twist looked beseechingly at Reggie.

"Go on Twist. Maybe you can figure out what's going on with him."

Twist gave a little smile. "Thanks Reg. Sorry, Ell. He gets like that sometimes…I'll see you guys after school." He turned back and squeezed Reggie's arm. "It'll be ok Reggie. I'll figure it out."

Reggie was too angry to register the physical intimacy in his assurance. Ell was too full of emotion – not just anger now, but something akin to guilt. Maybe she shouldn't have told Reggie about that…I mean, it was his business-wait. Wait a motherfucking minute. Had he just called her a jealous _bitch_? _Jealous?_ Oh for the love of-

"I'm sorry Ell. I didn't know it had gotten that bad."

"Well damn it's not your fault, Reg. I mean, I didn't want to say anything, but so far I have all my classes with the boy, and it's kind of like that all the time."

"He wasn't like this before. Before school I mean, and especially not before this summer."

Ell raised an eyebrow. "What happened?"

Reggie sighed. "I wish I knew. I wish I knew…"

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Guess who has never taken Spanish IT IS ME. So please tell me if (and when, darlings) I am doing it wrong, thank ye. This was pop up again in later, sexier chapters, so get ready. *Excited Face*


	4. Ch3: Man Time, Sam Time, and Tito Time

**Chapter 3: Man time, Sam time, and Tito Time/Oh the Wind in Your Hair **

**(So what if for a moment my heart stopped. It means nothing.)**

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Nope nope. Don't own Rocket Power.

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"_Jesus_ what a whore."

"Who?"

"Twist, keep up. That Ell girl."

"Wait, what? But she just got here."

"So? She moves quickly I guess."

"Um…Otto-man where is she moving to?"

Otto sighed, wondering how Reggie had dealt with this all summer. "Twist, I mean she's being a jealous whore already."

"Oh." Twister reflected upon this for a moment. "She likes someone _already?_ Who?"

"Gahhhhh." If Otto didn't know any better, he'd swear Twister was being dense on purpose. "Look she blabbed about Emma sitting on my lap in English and if that doesn't mark her out as a bitch I don't know what does."

"…You let Emma sit on your lap? _Why?"_

"Twister…not the point."

"Oh, ok. Well actually…in a way she was kind of defending you."

Otto slowed down so Twister could walk alongside him. "Wait, what?"

"Well Reggie was tweaked when I accidentally mentioned your fan-club, (they were chasing me, man!) and Ell said you probably weren't interested in them because you seemed fine with Emma." Twister paused and scrunched his face in thought. "In fact…I don't even think she mentioned anything about your lap at…" Twister trailed off as the look on Otto's face became borderline dangerous.

"Looked happy? Well I'm not going to complain when an attractive girl throws herself at me…I mean, what kind of lame-o does that?"

"Us."

Otto stopped suddenly, peering up at the taller boy.

"What?"

"Well, us before this summer at least. C'mon Otto-man, you remember that promise last summer, don't you? Bros before Hos, Squids before Shoobs. And Reggie…."

"Is a Rocket. End of discussion."

"Yeah. But only Shoobs act like…like…"

"And where does this Ell girl fit in to our promise?"

"Well where does Emma?"

Otto glared up at Twister for a moment, before groaning loudly, and taking a few steps down the hall. He didn't get too far before he stopped, turned around, and stalked back over to Twister, who had remained stationary. He sighed.

"Ok Twist, I'll explain this slowly, so it might get through to you." Twister frowned at that, but let him continue. "This summer with you and Reggie gone I had a lot of time to think," Otto held up a hand to silence Twister's protest, "and I've come to realize that when we were 15, we just weren't ready for fame, and what came with it. Popularity, girls…power, Twist. And now that I'm 16 and a ½, I'm down for it. It's my greatness Twist," seeing Twister's confused face he kept going, "they want a piece of it too."

"But what about us?"

"Don't worry, bro, you're still my _best_ bro. And of course, you're still my filmographer. You'll just have to get used to a couple new additions to the fan club. Reggie will too." He paused, and brightened. "And hey...maybe I can send a girl or two your way?" Laughing, he strode off down the hall.

"Ummm…no thank you…" Twister muttered distractedly as he ran to catch up with his best bro. He was less concerned with Otto's magnanimous offer and more with the conversation he was going to have later today. How was he going to tell all this to Reggie?

* * *

Sam watched concernedly as a maddened Reggie paced the length of his room. Ell sat on the bed while Sam manned the desk. Twister had, after reporting back to Reggie, opted to go boarding at Madtown with Otto, to see first hand what he was up to.

"Girls, Sammy, girls! This is _Otto_. What is he going to do with girls?!"

Sam and Ell shot each other a look. They had known each other for less than a week, and they were already kindred spirits (of a sort). Both sought to calm down their friend.

"Well, from what Twister says it sounds like Otto is less interested in the girls," (Ell snorted, Sam shot her a look and continued), "and more in the popularity. He's always been into himself Reg. He had nothing else to do this summer but improve, and then show off. It's just finally gotten to his head."

"Well what do we DO about it?"

"I don't know."

For a few moments, silence reigned. Then Reg began again, clearly distracted but not as upset, "Well the other thing is his reaction to Ell."

"What?" Ell sat up on the bed. "Re…reaction to me? Oh, the whole 'I'm a jealous bitch' thing. Yeah. I don't even _know_ the guy."

"Well you knew about him. And it's not like Twister and I didn't mention you…I mean, he knew plenty about you before you even came here. It's not like him to hate someone his friends like."

"Well…I did kinda rat him out."

"Well he shouldn't have been doing that in the first place."

Ell chuckled. "You sound like his mom."

"I practically am! Grrr. And he listens to me about as much as he would a real mom."

"The important question is how does Twister feel about all this?"

Both girls looked at Sam, and then each other.

"He looked uncomfortable when he told me."

"Which parts disturbed him the most?"

"Uhhh…" Reggie looked up at the ceiling, trying to visualize their conversation, "Otto's speech about greatness and…well the part about the girls. Twister is not ready for girls."

Ell said nothing, but raised an eyebrow at Reggie. Sam wisely chose to ignore this.

"Well, ok. So Otto's best friend has noticed something shaky is going on…I guess all we can do is wait it out a bit. Maybe it won't get any worse than this."

"Mhhm."

"So uh…tell me about surfing you guys." Ell's inquiry sparked the change in conversation- the trio fell to talking about the upcoming Surfing Competition that incidentally, neither of the teens were participating in. Reggie wasn't as she was covering the event, Sam because his skill level was not equal to the challenge, and Ell, obviously, as she had never surfed in her life – but it wasn't long before Reggie realized they had another conversation topic to exploit.

"Waitaminute. Sammy. Where were you _all day?_ Don't tell me you were skipping school again like that one Snow Day you and Otto took when we were kids…"

Sam looked sheepish behind his thick-rimmed glasses. "Well uh…I was there for the second half of the day…"

"Yeah, I know. But what about _before_ lunch?"

"I was in class then too. Just uh…just not at Ocean Shores High."

"WHAT."

"I'm taking classes at the local college, Reg. So I technically have to enroll some classes here, but I never really attend them. It was my mom's idea, don't look at me like that! I wanted to just attend high school too…"

"Damn…so that's why Otto's behavior was news to you…you didn't get to school until after lunch…"

The knocking at the door made the three jump. Mrs. Dullard stuck her head in and informed Sam it was time for dinner. The girls took their cue and announced their goodbyes, promising to talk later. On their way to the Shack (Ell lived within walking distance, in apartment 315 of the Windy Towers) they ran into Twister, boarding fast without a helmet, which Reggie gave him an earful for later. Leaving Ell at the intersection, Reg and Twist made their way to dinner.

"So how was Madtown?"

Twister gave Reggie a look that almost explained it all. He had picked up his board and was now carrying it, so he could walk along side her comfortably. "It was full of Shoobs, Reggie! Shoobs who couldn't even skate!" He paused as he reflected, and shuddered. "And girls that weren't wearing enough clothes." He shot her a side-glance. "They were being all flirty, but Otto didn't pay much attention, really. He was mostly just showing off. But Reggie," he stopped to look directly at her, "He's gotten a LOT better. I mean…he must have been practicing hardcore every day since we were gone."

"Enough to justify the way he's been acting?"

Twister sighed. "I don't think so. I don't really like the way he is now…it's like when it was really bad when we were kids, but all the time now."

"Ohh god."

Twister looked over at Reggie, concern in his gaze. Without thinking, he put his hand on her shoulder, and patted it gently. "It'll be ok, Reg. He's always gotten better…he'll be back to normal soon."

Reggie looked up at him, his open, freckled, endearing face calming her down almost as much as his soft Spanish accent had (the girls at YAF had all made very clear just how sexy his voice was). She gave him a little half smile, noticing his lips turning up in return. "Thanks, Twist."

"Anytime, Rocket girl." The moment was almost past (they had stopped at the intersection in sight of the Shore Shack) yet still they both held onto it – Twister simply rested his wrist lightly on her shoulder, while Reggie unconsciously leaned into the weight. An almost-magenta curl brushed against the back of his hand and as he turned his palm over to catch it between his fingers, Tito's voice broke through their reverie, "Hey little cuzzes! Help an old man with some supplies?"

They twitched away from each other as if they had done something wrong, which of course they weren't, but the guilty surprise was there nonetheless. Tito kindly didn't remark on it, although he certainly noticed it (had been, in fact, noticing the subtle change in relationship between the two since they returned from the YAF program). So he chattered on about non-related things as they helped him cart boxes and bags of supplies (one suspiciously heavy one labeled "Vegemite"), with his particular wisdom making sure not to bring up Otto, either. Tito Makani Jr. sees much, undeniably.

While Twister did his best to hold up the conversation, Reggie sank into herself, reliving a certain 12 seconds of her life over and over again, without even realizing it.

* * *

The one bad thing about uploading multiple chapters at once is that I do not have little messages for people who might actually be reading this. Cough like reviewers cough. So um. Yeah.


	5. Ch 4: No Surfing or Kegstands?

**Chapter 4: Surfing Tournaments With No Actual Surfing/ "No Twister. There Will Be No Kegstands Tonight."**

**(It's not you my hands reach for. It's not you my eyes seek.)**

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* * *

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I own a viola named Domen, a boyfriend I shall call Kentucky, but I do not own a Nicktoon.

* * *

October flew by with no real ceremony – even Homecoming, one of the red-letter days of the average high school student's existence passed almost without comment. Only Sam attended. Otto was competing in a competition several hours south of Ocean Shores, and Reggie went to watch. Ell was playing a wedding (and following reception, which lasted 5 hours and was hosted by a woman most liberal with alcoholic beverages) and Twister decided to hang out with his family, which that night even included Lars, who had come home from college for the weekend. In fact, the characters did not all assemble again until about 3 weeks later, on the day of the Surf Competition. Of course they interacted, in two and threes and sometimes fours, but never all together, and never in ways too vital to our story. The outright animosity between Otto and Ell died down to a steady ignorance of each other, which was quite a feat as they shared 4 classes out of 6, and sat next to each other for the first hour of every day. Sam continued splitting his time between high school and college, falling behind socially even while demonstrating his academic prowess. Reggie continued to alternately worry and fume with anger over her younger brother's antics (and the ever growing fan clubs based in his and Twister's honor). Twister continued to play the go between, hanging out with Otto when he could, but spending a noticeably large amount of time with Reggie, Sam and Ell. Ell simply hoped that she would survive high school. The confrontation was brewing, and the unsteady peace they had built up was beginning to crack, but all hoped (if they thought about it at all) that it would hold for a while yet.

The day of the Surf Competition was beautiful, as it knew it must be, and the excitement was almost palpable. Representing Ocean Shores High School was Trish Conlin, Trent Verner, (between the two the rivalry was bitter, partly because Trish was an empowered woman, and because the two were in a relationship), Maurice "Twister" Rodriguez, and of course, Otto Rocket. There were others, yes, but they do not figure in our story.

The morning began quite abruptly for Reggie, as her brother was doing something he hadn't done since they were kids – jumping on her bed, with her still in it.

"Reggie! (Bounce). Reggie wake up! (Bounce). It's the day of the competition! (Bounce, bounce).

Reggie groaned, shaken from a pleasant dream that she couldn't quite remember, but knew Twister's hat had figured in it. Something about it being on the ground?

"Reggie! Wake-"

"OTTO! I HEAR YOU! GET OUT OF MY ROOM!" She kicked at her rambunctious brother, but her sheets kept her from doing any harm. Laughing, he jumped off her bed and ran out of her room.

"Hurry up Rocket Girl, the beach is waiting…Victory is calling!"

Grumbling, Reggie got out of bed. Maddening as it was to get woken up that violently, she couldn't help but grin. Rocket boy was back – at least for today. Actually, the last couple days had seen an almost complete return to the Otto they all knew and for the most part loved. In a way that was to be expected. Otto never let _anything_ get in the way of his competitions. She just hoped that this behavior might last until after the competition. Reggie laughed as she pulled on her clothes and grabbed her 'Zine materials. No matter what, this was going to be her brother's day – he always made sure of that!

* * *

"Dude, did you see that massive beaf?"

"Yeah man it was whack…but Trish was gnarly!"

"Yeah man. I didn't know she was that good."

Ell wove through the crowd, trying to find Reggie or Sam. Snippets of conversation bombarded her, but she didn't want to look too closely at the ocean until she had someone there with her. She hadn't liked the ocean, _any_ ocean, for years. Thankfully she spotted the two quickly enough, under a tent set up on the beach, prepping for interviews. Sam was deep in conversation with Sherry, a close friend to both Reggie and Trish.

"Hey guys, what's up?"

"Oh hey Ell. Did you see Trent wipeout?"

"Ahh no, I missed it, but I heard about it on the way over. I heard Trish was uh, gnarly though. "

"Haha yeah she totally rocked the waves. Twister is about to go, have you seen him surf?"

"No, is he good?"

"Second only to Otto. Look."

Ell turned her eyes to the water, only to snort with laughter a moment later.

"Damn you weren't kidding…he wears that hat everywhere."

Reggie chuckled. "Mhhhm. When we were little and had sleepovers he would sleep with it on."

"He has hair, right?"

Reggie shot Ell a look. "No. He is absolutely bald except for that little bit that sticks out in the front. But he's starting, watch!"

Ell kept her eyes on Reggie a moment longer, wondering at her interest. Hadn't she seen the boy surf for years? Holding in a shrug, she turned back to watch Twister battle the waves. Reg was right, he _was_ good. Although Ell didn't know what exactly he was doing (Reg was muttering words under her breath that Ell thought must be the names of the tricks or something) she could tell he was good at it. When it was over, she cheered with Reg and Sam, glad that he had done well, and that the nausea that accompanied prolonged exposure to large bodies of water was at a surprisingly manageable level.

"It'll be a while before Otto goes now. They've placed him last…again. We might as well get some interviews…Ell, wanna' hold down the fort with Sammy?"

"Mmm sure."

Ell had to stifle a grin as Reggie made her way down the beach to where Twister had just came ashore. Trent and Trish had finished a little while ago, yet Twister would always be the first she went to. Ell laughed a little to herself. And she said he wasn't ready for girls…

"What are _you_ doing here?"

Ell spun around, the anger in the voice making her almost choke on her words. "I'm helping your sister."

Otto Rocket continued to glare at her. Ell didn't want to admit it, but he was imposing as hell shirtless and a surfboard at his side. Ell could feel her back stiffen. "She's over there interviewing Twist."

"_Twist._"

"Yeah, for The 'Zine." Ell could see they were beginning to attract attention, and so sought to deflect his attention. "Look, don't you have something to do…? Like surf?" (_Or flirt,_ she added silently. _Anything that is far away from me, really_.)

Otto could feel his fingers tighten around his board. Who was this girl to annoy him like this? Her officious tone and disinterested manner (she wasn't even meeting his _eyes_) pissed him off, for reasons he couldn't really explain.

"Oh believe me, when the time comes, you'll see me surf, _little_ girl." Otto knew he had scored a hit when her eyes shot across to his, faintly crackling with a heady mixture of anger, distaste, and something he couldn't quite name. It didn't matter. He had said it because she was by no means small, being as tall as he was and athletically (albeit attractively) curvy as well.

Ell knew the next thing to come out of her mouth would be indiscernible to all but herself (and in the case that she merely sputtered, to all _including_ herself) so she said nothing, and merely held her hands up. Looking down for a moment, she collected herself, and smiled as charmingly as she could at him.

"Well then. The waves are yours…good luck on your time." Still smiling at a slightly confused Otto, she walked past him, careful not to brush against him. She knew her last sentence hadn't exactly made sense, but it was the best she could do at the moment. At least she had kept her accent carefully under control.

Otto stood there for a moment, unable to process exactly what had happened. He had thought he had won, had belittled her, but then she had pulled that stunt and walked away…No matter. It was as she had said, the waves were his, as was the day. He shook himself and stepped forward to meet what he felt was a beach full of his adoring fans. No one was going to stop him now.

* * *

Twister looked over at the crowd surrounding Otto through the viewfinder on his camera. He had, of course, been the first to congratulate Otto on his outstanding win, and had videotaped the whole thing. But that was almost 30 minutes ago, and the fans were still mobbing his best bro. Even Raymundo had found himself hard pressed for time to congratulate his son. Twister sighed. Maybe he'd go see what Reggie was doing. Rumor was that there was going to be a party later on the beach, and of course Otto had made him promise to come. Maybe he could extract the same promise from Reggie so he'd have someone sane to talk to…or at the very least Ell. She could protect him from all the girls that seemed to be chasing him lately. Otto would kill him if he invited her tho. He still couldn't even say her name without some derogatory epitaph.

"Heya, Twist. Whatcha filming?"

It was like the gods themselves had heard his thoughts.

"Hey Reg. Nothing really…just Otto man with all his _fans._"

"Ahh. Hey, have you seen Raymundo? Or Tito?"

"Not for a while, why?"

"Well they had been talking about throwing a surprise party for Otto…just in case he won and all, but I haven't seen them for a while. I was kind of hoping you had." That was a lie. Reggie knew that her father and his best friend had left 10 minutes ago, with no plan of party in mind. She knew about the party on the beach (and of course, The BeachHouse) later this evening, and was wondering whether Twister was going or not, ie, whether she should go and protect him. After all, this was _her_ Twister, and protect him she would.

"Uhhh well I dunno about the party Reg. Otto's already going to a different one…"

"Oh, yeah, the one on the beach. The one with three kegs." Reggie did not have Ell's talent for neutrality, and Twister heard the faint hint of displeasure in her voice.

"Yep. Hey…you wouldn't wanna come, would you? Make me stay away from the kegs?" Twister winced at the eager tone of his voice. When would he learn to act cool? But Reggie didn't pay too much attention to that. She was rather focused on the sudden swing of her mood when he had asked her. Why the hell was she so happy now? It was just Twister…

"Anyways, it's not like we haven't-" Twister looked around so furtively that Reggie couldn't help but crack a smile, "_had alcohol before." _He finished in a whisper, conspiratorially. He grinned down at her. "Maybe not as much as Ell or Duncan the Dumpster but we could try."

"Twist, we're not getting drunk tonight. I mean, I'm not…I mean…Ohh…."

Twister looked confused. "Well? What do you mean?"

Reggie shot him a tired grin. "WE are going to protect Otto tonight, and make sure he doesn't do anything stupid."

"Oh. I think we can do that." He looked at her plaintively. "Does that mean no kegstands?"

"Yes Twister. There will be no kegstands tonight."

* * *

Kegstands, as every college musician knows, are the sinew of social networking. Awkward when discussed in formal company, plain disgusting in broad daylight, but damn, you like where they can take you. By way of their assistance in moving your body, I mean.

In other news, I can't figure out if Code:Breaker was picked up by Del Ray LAST December, or the coming (in 11 exruciating months) December. Anyone who knows (or cares) please help me out. Thanks :)


	6. Ch5: Chapter Where The Wrong People Kiss

**Chapter 5: The Chapter Where The Wrong People Kiss**

**(In my dreams I tear your hat off and we kiss until we can't remember why we shouldn't)**

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* * *

  
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I don't own Rocket Power, and neither do I own the Spanish language, as you shall see. This is the (sexier) chapter I warned you about, earlier, with the misusage of Spanish? Yes yes I see you remember. Well. You've been warned.

* * *

The party was in full swing by the time his sister finally showed up with the Squid, Sherry, and The Bitch. Otto was sure of it, even though he'd had a couple cups, and had pregamed at the Shack with a couple of college surfers he had met over the summer (through Lars, ironically enough) before hand. He knew because he remembered Reggie looking suspiciously nice (tasteful yet noticeable jewelry and a slightly nicer-than-usual top over jeans…although anytime she went without the camo pants could be considered dressing up for the Rocket girl) and because Twister suddenly sat up and started paying attention to his surroundings.

"Chill, dude. Reg won't care if you've been drinking. She's not gonna' _tell_ on us."

"Uh, yeah dude. Haha. Of course."

And…were Sherry and the Squid holding hands? Oh man no doubt about it…she was all over him, talking a mile a minute to some acquaintance while Sam just stood there, stoic, a little embarrassed, but mostly happy. Otto shook his head. Since when had they…Oh, probably since Sam got back. He wondered at the brief flicker of guilt that rose in his stomach, but decided that it was somehow alcohol induced, and tipped back his head to finish off another can (perhaps his 8? 9? He had lost count after 6, back at the Shack) of beer. A small pair of hands met around his waist, Emma had come up from behind to hug him. He groaned inwardly, _again? What was this girl's deal?_ But before he could remove the girl from his midsection (in all this he vaguely heard Twist saying he'd be back, had to take a piss or something) his eyes fell upon the tall blonde next to his sister. As if his eyes tugged hers, her head turned, and Ell Bryndis's gaze connected with his. All of a sudden he felt exposed, as if she had seen everything in him worth seeing. Judging by the cool expression on her face, it wasn't that impressive, either. Impulsively, he pulled Emma in front of him, so that Ell could see him with someone else. See him blatantly not giving a damn. After all, why should he care about her? So what if she was friends with Reggie and Twister. That didn't mean that _they_ had to get along.

* * *

Ell whipped her head back around. For the love of GOD what was with that boy? Had he started pawing Emma in response to her? What the hell was going on here? She needed a drink. She needed SEVERAL drinks. She had cheated- Reggie asked that she not hit up the kegs tonight, as she wanted to set a good example for Twister and her brother. Pshhh. Like she hadn't drank with the two of them this summer…but Ell had filled up a flask (with the words "Holy Water" emblazoned on the side) with vodka, and was swigging from that from time to time. If she had to survive another confrontation with that Rocket Boy, she was going to need it.

* * *

Reggie turned to say something to Ell about that flask of hers (and how alarmingly often she was drinking from it) when a hand grasped her upper arm and literally pulled her away from the crowd, to a slightly more secluded spot. It was dark, here. Reggie felt her hackles rise as she was about to give her abductor hell. At least, until he spoke.

"We need to talk."

Twister? Reggie gulped at the sudden sensation in her stomach. She knew it well, it was what she felt every time she nailed a particularly hard move, or rode down the wave _just_ right.

"Yeah? What is it? Did you need to pull me away from the party?"

"Reggie, the situation is out of control!"

"Wait, who, Otto?"

"No! The girls! Why did you take so long?!"

"Girls are hitting on you?"

"They are blowing me kisses. Reggie, what if they hit me? Does that count as a kiss?"

Reggie looked up at the endearingly bewildered and concerned boy, torn between the desire to laugh and to punch him in the arm. This was Twister at his best…the silly if slightly intoxicated Twist she hadn't seen for quite a while now.

"No, Twist. It only counts if both of your lips touch."

The relief spreading over his face was remarkable. "Thank god. I was getting worried about Sheila…." His face brightened. "But now that you're here…you can protect me!"

Reggie was about to verbally express her heart's contradictory protestations (running along the lines of _Like hell! I didn't come to _protect_ you, don't use me Twister!)_ but the joy etched on his face and the way he grabbed her hand pulling her alongside (and very close) to him made her stop. She had been going to protect him anyways…so what if he thought of it the same way? Something about her thoughts didn't make sense, but the warmth of his hand and his body (felt when others jostled her against him) made thinking objectively rather difficult. Quite frankly, she didn't even know where they were going.

"Uh, Reggie?"

"Mm?"

"Where's everybody?"

"Twister we're surrounded by people and you're asking for more?"

"No, I mean Otto. And Ell. I think I see Sam and Sherry over by the speakers. Um. They're kissing for real."

"Twister!" Whacking him lightly on the arm to chastise, Reggie stood on tiptoe so she could better see through the crowd. But he was right. They hadn't been gone for much more than 5 minutes and both their friends had disappeared.

"I bet they're together. Fighting again, probably." Twister announced tiredly.

"Who…Otto and Ell? Why would they be together? They hate each other."

"Well…they're not here…they're not here together…why shouldn't they be together somewhere else?"

Reggie stared up at the boy, wondering if that should make as much sense as it did. She blamed the shots of vodka she had taken from Ell's flask when the girl hadn't been looking. While she was at it, she could blame how damn attractive Twister was on that too. I mean, why else would she be standing here, holding his hand, and wanting to kiss his freckles? Madness. Drunken madness. But at the moment he looked oh so delicious…

Twister didn't ask her what was wrong, or why she was still looking up at him. He was pretty sure he was staring too, and was definitely hoping she didn't ask for her hand back. He had led her along like this a couple times at camp seeing as he was so tall and everything. But this was different, and they both knew it. He decided to push his luck just a bit more.

"Well, so start doing your job."

"Hmm?"

"You're my shield, remember? So you have to protect me from all _las chicas locas_."

Reggie attempted to give Twister a look that would have stripped away all his confidence (if he hadn't have had three beers earlier that evening), but the way his voice had dropped rather intimately when slipping into Spanish weakened the force of her gaze.

"And I think… _quiero bailar (I want to dance)_. But I'd look pretty _tonto (dumb) _just dancing by myself with you just standing there so… _Pienso quisiera que usted bailara también (I think I want you to dance too)_."

Reggie felt a huge grin threaten to split her face even as she felt desire sweep through her entire body. The mix of emotions was too strong for her to conceal and so she tilted her head down, praying he hadn't seen her pupils dilate, or her monkey-faced smile Twister got the wrong idea though, and bent down slightly, tugging lightly at her chin with his long fingers.

"Reggie? _Lo siento_ you don't have to that was dumb I mean why would you-"

Reggie looked up at him, the smile having moved from her lips to her eyes so that Twister was effectively poleaxed. God, she was beautiful.

"Well Twist? You ready?"

His patented Devil-May-Care grin curved across his face.

* * *

Ell was drunk. She had wandered down the beach a ways before realizing that wasn't the smartest move, and so then headed back to the pier, where she could potentially reorient herself and eventually get home. She was borderlining the level of drunk where nostalgia flooded in and introspection made her want to be alone. She also wanted to speak her native language instead of this English crap but that would have to wait until she got home. She thought she had found a promising spot for sobering up a bit (underneath a lit street lamp lining the pier) but when she heard an upraised female voice from the direction of the unlit street lamp three lampposts down, her curiosity got the better of her, and she went to investigate, drunk or not.

"So what, am I not good enough for you?" The voice was Emma's.

"Not right now, Emma." Ell froze. Uh oh. That was Otto.

"I'm sure. I think I'll go see what _Twister_ is doing…maybe _he_ won't reject me."

Before Ell could sneak away gracefully, Emma rushed past her. Thankfully, Ell had been able to whip out her cell phone, and was pretending to take a call. It fooled Emma. It didn't fool Otto.

There was no warning. She was pulled into the shadows and then her back was against the wall, wrists pinned, an unreadable Otto looming before her.

"Enjoying yourself?"

"I was making a phone call."

"I'm sure. At 2 am?"

"What's it to you?"

"It's my business when you're spying on me. Can't leave me alone, can you."

Ell cursed her decision to drink tonight. Confrontations with this boy were difficult at the best of times, but drunk they were absolutely impossible. Her eyes kept roaming over his face, and getting lost in his dreadlocks. For whatever reason, they absolutely befuddled her. Not to mention his eyes, which were magnified and lost at the same time behind his green-tinted glasses.

Belatedly, Ell realized he had insinuated something, yet could not remember what it is.

"What?"

Otto couldn't remember a semi-intimate moment where he looked a girl straight in the eye. He had always been small for his age until he had shot up over the summer to his present height (about an inch taller than he had been at the beginning of the school year), which was taller than 98% of the females his age in Ocean Shores. There is a sort of intimacy about looking a member of the opposite sex directly in the eyes. Maybe that was what made him so uncomfortable, even as it drew his attention.

Or maybe it was the fact that at this moment, her light eyes moving distractedly over his face, her strong face softened by the drink and the late hour, her curly hair being tugged by the ocean breeze, he found her something beyond his experience and ability to describe. This was always the case, yet at the moment, he didn't find it too terrible.

He found it enticing.

"I said," Otto shifted his body so that one of his legs was splitting hers, and their bodies were only a whisper apart, "that you just can't," (he angled his face down so that when he lifted it again with his next words, he was suddenly only a few inches away from her face) "leave me alone."

Ell blinked. Was it just her, or was he getting closer?

"I don't-" her breath caught in her throat as his eyes flickered down to her lips, but she recovered as quickly as she could, "know what you're talking about."

"Mmm." The sound came from deep in his throat and Ell could almost feel her body resonate with the vibration. Oh dear god was she turned on? By him? Oh no, ohhhhh no this wasn't happening this wasn't-

"Somehow…" Otto brushed his nose against her cheek, "I don't believe you." He pulled back, meeting her eyes for a moment before he leaned in again to gently press his lips against hers. He hadn't planned on kissing her, hadn't planned on any of this, really, but in that moment she had haltingly exhaled and he was undone. For the span of a heartbeat, one excruciatingly slow heartbeat the kiss was slow and gentle, yet surprisingly communicative. It spoke of their mutual fear and confusion, yet growing desire. When the next heartbeat came however, their passion had overridden their common sense. Grasping and burning, they came together almost violently as Otto pulled her to him, and she dropped her cell phone to the ground as her hands flew to his face. He held her too tightly, but all he could focus on was the texture and taste of her lips as they melded passionately over his. Her hands were half digging into his dreads and his glasses' strap and eventually he noticed that his glasses were an obstruction her nose kept discovering and in a fluid motion pushed her back against the wall and pulled them over his head. In the heartbeat they were apart, Ell had enough time to notice how different he looked without the barrier his glasses represented, how oddly yet temptingly vulnerable, and had time for a fleeting sense of dismay as her heart leapt in attraction. Then he was upon her again, lips burning against hers, pushing away any rational thought. Ell had kissed other men before, (real men, older than her, not some 16 year old boy) but she had never experienced this breathless, desperate passion before, and was helpless against it. Personally, she blamed it on his lips – she had never run across such full yet smooth lips before. She kissed him back for all she was worth, giving to him all that he was pushing upon her, even as a voice in the back of mind shouted at her to stop, shouted at her a name she should be remembering, the name of the boy Otto reminded her so much of…

In Otto's mind, a similar battle was taking place. Beneath the desire that drove him towards this girl, there simmered the fear of inexperience – Otto had never been kissed before tonight. It was that fear that made him push away Emma (along with a lack of empathy and extraordinarily strong self-love that fueled his confidence) yet here he was, making out with a girl he couldn't stand…

As if she read his thoughts, she pushed him away, yet only a few inches.

"What are we…what are we doing?" She was far too caught up in the moment to realize her accent was noticeable.

Otto barely had time to breathe out an answer before his lips were drawn like a magnet back to hers, "I don't know."

Breathlessly, she continued against the onslaught of his kisses. "But I don't…" (_kiss_) "I don't even," (_kiss_) "don't even like you."

"Neither do I. _(Kiss, kiss)_ I think I," (_kiss_) hate you."

"So do I."

Otto suddenly pulled back, a strange fire animating his face. "Ok. We both hate each other." He paused, eyes wild. "Good."

Then he went back to kissing her, thumb stroking her jaw. Ell was beginning to become lost in her desire, her hands began to stroke his back, his neck, his chest, anything she could reach. He groaned against her mouth when she pushed her body against his. She could feel him straining against her. God she wanted him.

She probably would have shown him just how much she wanted him (and change the direction of the story substantially) if Officer Shirley hadn't kindly turned on the sirens, alerting the teens to scatter before she could officially bust the party. Ell finally regained her sense (_oh sweet and merciful god what did I almost just _DO) and tore away from Otto before he knew what she was doing. She ran all the way home, thankful he didn't know where she lived. She didn't realize she was crying (only because she was drunk, she emotionally assured herself) until she slammed the door shut behind her (her neighbors were going to bitch in the morning) and stumbled into her bathroom.

It was then that she realized she had left her cell phone.

* * *

They had started off platonically but that was long gone now and they were touching, oh they were _touching _and Reggie had never known a sensation so sweet and yet so painful. The lights were low, barely enough to see the couple next to you, and so her world was defined by touch, smell, sound and the thump of her heart as it pounded through her chest. Her back was up against Twister's chest, his right hand steadied her hips while his left, which he had offered to her palm up, was still entwined with hers. Neither spoke. His head was angled down so that she felt his nose against her hair, and she struggled against the temptation to tilt her head up and claim his lips, come what may. The feel of his body rocking against her hips was making her weak, and she could feel her resistance slipping away until someone bumped into her, pushing her away from Twister, and in the brief moment of respite she realized how close she had been to making a major mistake with one of her best friends. She moved back over to him as he pulled her away from the rambunctious couple that had torn them apart, and looking up, felt her heart stop. He was so handsome. Even with the hat, the damn hat he had worn since he was a little boy she thought he was the most amazing thing she had ever seen. All she could do was stare up at him like an idiot, and hope that he wasn't smart enough to read her heart on her face. Look up at him and hope that his face wasn't _actually_ coming closer to hers, that it was just a trick of the light, even as she desperately wanted to pull his face down the last 3 inches or so and taste the warmth of his lips.

It was at the penultimate moment (before the moment of intentions becoming obvious, and their lips coming altogether too close for their reputations and possibly even friendship to handle) that outside interference came.

"Freeze! I don't want any funny business, kids. Just stay where you all are!"

It was Officer Shirley. Teenagers being teenagers, they all tore off, desperate to avoid capture. Twister and Reggie were closer to the exit than most, and with the briefest moment of chagrin they turned and ran, down the beach to the shortcut that lead to the Shore Shack.

* * *

At least I (translated) my Spanish fail so that you know what I'm talking about. I also have realized that I make up verbs all over the place…cough cough "borderlining." Not that you'll ever see THAT again. *Squints* Last chapter for the evening tho, folks. Got a couple more done but I shall not put them up until someone expresses desire (or I write more…cough review). In any case, Kentucky is becoming irate and at the risk of him teasing me for the rest of the night about my nerdtastic habits I will bid you all adieu. *Bows*


	7. Ch 6: Of Euphoria, Dating, and Blood

**Chapter 6: Sherry's Euphoria/Radiometric Dating Reigns Supreme/Blood. Everywhere. **

**(She has to be. **_**Has**_** to. Then she will be mine. Even if she does not want to be…)**

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Guess what I still do not own? (Do I really need to keep putting this?)

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REVIEWS!!!!! Thank ye, to all and sundry that like to remind me I am alive and sometimes even writing things. I apologize in advance – I actually had chapters 6 and 7 done by the time I posted the first 5 (plus prologue) and nowwwwww I have even more than that done, but you might have to wait a bit for those as well, primarily as I haven't finished the multipart Christmas bonanza. But it will be good, for those who wait.

**Xsmile4mex:** Well here you are…thank you for reviewing

**Kimba616:** *****Expresses gratitude for the review*

**Linables: **Hells yes to the Reggie/Twister pairing. I'm glad you enjoy what I have so far and hope (all of you) continue to enjoy what I put out. Thank you!

**Thesolitary-dragon:** Ahh, you. (The rest might want to skip this one cuz it might take a while, haha.) Thank you for your in depth and thoughtful reviews! I honestly never have received such a complete review and kind of hope you like manga so you can review my other stuff (jkjk). Take all the time for nostalgia you want. I mean, look at your reviews! But to address your points: The jump in time is something I've thought about, and I've sort of been kicking around writing a supplement chronicling major points of Twister and Reggie's summer. Sorry Otto and Sam fans, their summer adventures probably won't come up too much. In a later chapter (cough hint) I will have a character fondly refer back to an instance/evening at camp, but I don't want to give too much away, so yes. Big jump. Sorry! I hope I fulfill your desire for plot and keep everybody moving smoothly. Being OOC drives me absolutely nuts, and as I kind of don't remember what they're actually like in the first place I hope it still makes you happy. I'm glad the titles do Once again, thank you!

And finally… to my first reviewer, the lovely, anonymous and fairly terse **pvb101:** your wish is my command. Enjoy

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The Monday after the party dawned uncharacteristically overcast, with the threatening storm finally attacking at noon. Reggie and Twister had met up that morning on their daily walk to school feeling oddly guilty, but any or all desperate attempts at retaining normalcy or stepping off into the emotional unknown for either of them were put on hold by Otto's decision to walk with them. Usually he would wake before both to get some morning practice in, shower as they walked over, and then tear into school moments before the bell rang. Today however, he chose to begin even earlier than usual to catch his best bro and senior Team Rocket member at the one time they could all be alone.

It was a good thing that all were so preoccupied with their own inner turmoil that they only half paid attention to what the others were saying. Twister's responses were even more oblivious than usual, and Reggie's were downright clipped. If Otto wasn't so determined to have one thing answered for him (which he had to dance gently around – to ask straight out would end everything) he would have realized something was wrong with the two of them, but as it was, he was more concerned with the careful wording of his query, and his desperate, albeit concealed, curiosity as to its answer.

Which, when he eventually received it, made him run to school ahead of his friends, to their complete bewilderment. His odd actions capped off their surreal 15 minutes walk, and turning to shrug helpless looks at each other, they realized they hadn't really looked at each other all morning. Hadn't looked since last night, in fact, when they had been so intimately connected, and looking would have been more aptly described as a Gazing-Into-Each-Other's-Eyes type of endeavor. Reggie averted her gaze almost immediately, so she missed the faint blush staining Twister's high cheekbones. They continued on in silence for a few more footsteps, heartbeats, and castigating inner thoughts when in view of the front door, Twister stopped abruptly.

"Reggie. I…"

Something seemed to be pounding against her chest, but it couldn't be her heart, because she would swear that it had stopped. Pausing to glance behind at him, she opened her mouth to answer, although what she would have said was forever beyond her comprehension because at that moment, Sherry decided to volubly descend upon them.

"Reggie girl! Twister! Thank god I've finally found you! You won't believe what happened last night! Officer Shirley _caught_ Sam but she let him go, because he took a Breathalyzer and came out clean! Can you believe it? Sam! Ohh he was _so_ mature I wish you could have been there! Well, not like in jail or anything but really! I'm so glad I said I'd go to the party with him now…I wonder if he'll ask me out? Gawwwd I hope so!"

Twister blinked and attempted to still his reeling mind. This usually happened when he was exposed to Sherry when at her most euphoric, and the familiarity helped Reggie return to normal and take charge of the situation. Slipping her arm through Sherry's and bestowing a bemused glance at Twister, she steered them both towards the school.

"Sherry…I thought you guys were already dating?"

"Welllll we've gone on a few _dates_ but aren't actually _official_ yet. He can be _so_ cautious sometimes. But I think he's gonna make the move soon-" Sherry looked around conspiratorially, "after Officer Shirley let us go…I made it up to him." As Sherry beamed broadly (which was, ironically, a perfect foil for Twister's open-mouthed gape) Reggie could only manage a skeptically amused look, fighting to conceal the sudden clench in her stomach. She was happy for Sammy, obviously, but anything romantic these last couple days (and especially all of Saturday when she was recovering from her obvious yet hopefully temporary lapse into insanity) made her feel distinctly uncomfortable. For reasons she did not care to explain, she did not want to think about her weekend very closely. Or her brother's best friend, who had single-handedly invaded her waking and sleeping dreams with growing frequency since that one evening this summer. Muttering goodbye to Twister at his locker, Reggie walked on with Sherry to class, only half listening. The majority of her thought processes were taken up with not thinking about romance, Twister, or what he might have been about to say only minutes ago, continuing in an incessant loop. Reggie sighed. What the _hell_ was going on with her?

* * *

_Oh hell no. _Hell_ no. This better not be what I think it is_. Ell's mind began to spiral down the short, slippery road to madness as her fingers worked at the tightly folded note that had been roughly shoved through the slits in her locker door. Guarded by that certain amount of expectation she was able to shield her response as her eyes scanned the lines.

_We have something to discuss._

_Murdoch's room, 2:45 _

No mention of a name or her phone, but Ell knew who this was. She only sat next to him in English after all, and his tight scrawl was easy enough to recognize. Anyways, he was the only one she knew right now with "something to discuss." Ell slumped against her locker, hand shielding her face, mentally chastising herself for the umpteenth time. Luscious lips or no, why did she ever kiss him?

* * *

Twister squirmed in his seat as the movie on evolutionary biology droned on and on. It was the last class of the day, and even in the best of times he never had quite enough patience to last throughout the whole day, let alone after suffering through the emotional duress he had been subjected to this whole weekend. He and Ell sat in the back with two shoobie-wannabes, Jake and to Twister's immediate left, Loren. This normally would not have merited any attention, but today was the day Loren had decided to try her luck with Twister, much to his and Jake's dismay. Twister jumped as he felt Loren's long nails trace up his arm, causing goosebumps to settle in their wake.

"Hey Twist." Slumping over and tilting her head up in what she thought was an attractive pose, Loren began the onslaught. Twister shot Ell a look, who was staring in the direction of movie screen, although with glazed eyes. She hadn't noticed Loren's initial attack. Twister gulped.

"Uh, hi," he whispered back. Why oh why was he still afraid of girls? His mom hadn't locked him in a closet with one for _months_ now. He should just handle it like a man. Right.

"I couldn't help but notice…but you're looking really good lately…" This was accompanied by a possessive squeeze on his appreciable bicep. "Must be all that surfing, huh?"

"Uh yeah. Um, we should just watch-"

"A movie? Mmmm. I'd love to." Her lips curved into dangerous, feline smile. Twister's eyes widened. See? This was why girls frightened him. How did they _do_ that?!

Noticing Twister's uncomfortable sputters, Ell finally came to the rescue. "Jake. Man up. Your girlfriend's on the prowl again." Loren glared at Ell as Jake put an arm around Loren's shoulders, and started muttering to her under his breath. Twister shot Ell the Look of Gratitude.

"Thanks man."

Ell's lips quirked. If only she were a guy. Then she wouldn't be in this situation. "No problem, dude."

For maybe five minutes, radiometric dating reigned supreme over the classroom. Realizing he never would know and or care about the relationship habits of radios, Twister turned to his academic and All-Things-Related-To-The-Female-Species guru (Reggie had the habit of getting testy whenever he mentioned a girl) for advice.

"Ell?" Twister whispered, glancing up at the Mr. O'Brien who may or may not have been sleeping with his eyes open.

"Mhm?"

"I have a problem."

The irony was almost palpable. Ell looked over at Twister, tempted to utter words prophetic, true, and completely beyond his range of comprehension; along the lines of admitting her sin with his best friend. Seeing his expression of honest and painful befuddlement, however, she softened and whispered back, "Is it about Reggie?"

Twister, who had begun to tilt perilously toward the front of his chair, promptly fell to the floor, banging his face on his desk in the process. Even before Ell yelped "Twist!" the whole class had turned around, wondering what the noise was. Twister sheepishly got back to his seat, apologizing like mad and blushing like a sun-ripened tomato before he realized that his nose was in fact bleeding. All over the place. The teacher made a noise reminiscent of a heated steam kettle (he was in actuality sighing) and asked Ell to walk Twister to the nurse's office, as he was really not sure whether or not he could make it on his own. He made the possibility of Twister never returning seem like it was perhaps not the worst outcome to this scenario. Twister at this point recognized freedom, if perhaps not in its most ideal form, and practically dragged Ell from the room. Besides, not only was the blood getting everywhere, Ell knew what the problem was about before he said anything. Perhaps, Ell had _answers._

Yet Twister was sidetracked by fate in the form of Reggie Rocket, coming out of The 'Zine's impromptu office (an abandoned cleaning closet), where she worked during her Study Hall period. Taking one look at the bleeding Twister and the wide-eyed Ell (galvanized out of her stupor from the shock and guilt of Twister's accident) she assumed charge the way she had so often throughout their childhood. Ducking into the woman's room, she came out with half a roll of toilet paper that she shoved at Twister; tilted his head back, and in general mothered him through the process. She expertly handled his protestations and then proceeded to walk him herself to the nurse's office, even as the bell signaling the end of the day shrilled around them, and the halls began to fill with students eager for 2:30pm salvation. Ell stood still for a moment as the deluge of students flowed around her, perhaps thinking of going with the flow and momentary freedom, but she was not one to hide from that which worried her. She exhaled, forced a rueful smile, and pushed back against the crowd, making her way to the dreaded encounter.

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And, as the "parenthesis thing" is going to happen whether anyone likes it or not, I will put up the first 6

Prologue: Otto

Ch1: Twister (teehee)

Ch2: …………Otto (:O)

Ch3: Otto AND Ell. (The last one could possibly be Ell as well, but uh, that is up to you.)

Ch4: Oooh Otto and Ell again. I forgot I did this so many times in a row for them…oops.

Ch5: Reggie. (Thank god. Now on to the new ones.)


	8. Ch 7: Passion and Detente

**Chapter 7: Let's Make a Deal/Side Effects of Vodka and Moonlight/In Which Wisdom is Finally Understood.**

**(Sigh. She came in the kitchen to talk to **_**me**_** and all she can do is moon over **_**him**_**? Oh well. At least it's not Lars.)**

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Nuh nuh. Nuh nuh nuhhhhh nuh nuh. Don't own it, my friends.

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Otto unconsciously swung his legs as he sat on Mr. Murdoch's desk, waiting for her. He had left the note in her locker, directing her to meet him after school in Murdoch's room, but as she had not shown up for first hour this morning, he was a little nervous, nonetheless. He hadn't signed it, but she had to know it was from him. The question was whether or not she would come. He thought she would. He had her phone, after all. And one or two secrets he thought she might want to keep private.

Otto swallowed a nervous grin as she walked through the door, chin out and face close to impassive. She looked almost bored, if not for her ferocious aura. Otto allowed himself to be somewhat impressed as his eyes flicked over her form. Rigidity defined her stance, tension in the very air around her. She looked ready for battle, but at the same time contrarily reminded him vaguely of a model. Otto felt the first stirrings of desire flutter in his stomach and legs; fuck if he knew why, but he wanted her. And when Otto wanted something, he wanted it with all his passion, fervor, and drive. He didn't understand what she was to him, or how exactly he felt about her, but he knew beyond question that he desired her. Therefore, he would do anything it took to make her his, even if he had no idea really on what exactly that entailed. He craved her. He wanted her as much as he needed to be the best. That was just the way he was. She would be his.

Ell walked slowly and calmly to the desk, unfolding the note as she did. She would not show fear, not to this brazen little boy who sought to subdue her. She would not be taken in by his power, his dominance. She would not be afraid.

"I got your note." She would also not look at his ridiculous goggles, or his confusing mass of dreads, or his broad shoulders, or his legs, or-

"I have your phone." Otto glanced down at the desk, and Ell realized it was lying next to him.

"May I have it back?" Still not meeting his eyes. _I can't. Not yet. Not until I understand this tension between us. _

"Of course." Otto leaned back, looking expectantly at her. He made no move to hand it to her, so after a moment's hesitation, Ell stepped forward, close enough so that he could reach out and touch her, and shooting him a suspicious look, leaned forward to grasp her cell.

"_Let's make a deal."_ Otto whispered in her ear as she bent over him, and it caused her to jolt back, wide-eyed with suspicion, and without her cell phone.

"What?"

A small smile played on Otto's lips, while his goggles masked the nervousness in his eyes. "You heard me. Let's make a deal."

"About what?" _Oh no, ohhhhhh no_. Ell could see vaguely where this was going, and he couldn't…couldn't possibly be insinuating…

He stood up and took a step towards her in a movement so smooth it took Ell by surprise. His sudden proximity forcibly brought back memories, and caused her to exhale in a sibilant rush. Attempting to move away brought her thighs against a desk, which loss of balance then required her backside to land upon moments later. Otto moved in between her legs before she could clamp then together, and rested his knuckles on the desk, bringing his face in close to hers. Ell stared wide-eyed and defenseless against the power of his masculinity. God in heaven how did he do this to her?

"About how much you want me. And about how we're going to address the issue." Otto smirked as Ell turned her head to the side and strove to regain her determination.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh I think you do." Otto leaned back a little so that she would look at him again.

"No, I don't. I'm just here for my phone."

"Ah? Then go and get it." His arms fell to his sides although he remained leaning over her. She would have to move closer to him in order to get up. "Don't let me stop you."

Ell stood up unexpectedly, and with a smile more sultry than fearsome breathed into his face, "Then I won't." Brushing past him, her fingers had just closed upon the mobile when Otto's laugh broke through her defenses. Whipping around, she noticed he was now reclining on "her" desk, arms folded.

"What."

"You're amazing."

Ell stiffened. When would it be over? Being so near to him did things to her…things she would rather not think about. Especially if her behavior last Friday night was any indication of what happened when she impulsively acted on them. Obviously, it wasn't just a drunken foray. Damn it. She was attracted to this jerk.

Without bothering to respond, she strode toward the door, only to jerk back when his hand latched around her arm, and he pulled her back to him. Frustrated, Ell's emotions got the best of her.

"What do you want?!" Ell stared across the charged distance between their eyes; breath starting to hitch in her lungs and her softly parted lips beginning to twitch in agitation. For Otto, that was the final blow to his already thinly stretched discipline.

"For chrissakes you." Then his lips were on hers again far too desperately, and for a moment all Ell could do was revel in the pure explosion of feeling she had thought to be a side effect of the vodka and moonlight. Yet when he pulled her to him too tightly she came back to herself, and pushed herself away.

"What are…you can't just…I…" She looked down to settle herself. "Otto-" She almost choked when she realized this was the first time she had ever said his name, and judging by the way his eyes darkened, he realized it too. "Otto, we can't."

"Why not?" Oh god, his voice was thick with emotion and desire and she was supposed to say no to him?

"Because…" She leaned back as he moved closer to her, "Because we hate each other."

"That's why it's a deal." Otto winced at the hopefulness he could hear in his voice. Calm. Steady. Be in control. "We want each other, and it's affecting our lives, right? We can't act normally around each other. And it bothers Reggie and Twist. So shouldn't we address that?" In this surprising statement he had moved closer, and had captured her hand.

"But you're…Otto, and I'm-"

"No one has to know. No one would ever know. No one would suspect and then we'd be free to do whatever we want."

He was too close again, although he seemed content to merely grip her hand and devour her with his eyes. Ell knew there had to be some sort of problem with what he was saying, although the intensity of the moment was hindering her ability to discern what it was.

"How do I know that um. That you're not uh…that this isn't some sort of trick?"

Once delivered, her words hung heavy in the air. Otto blinked in surprise. She couldn't tell he was dead serious? For a moment, all they could do was stare at each other. It was only when Ell looked away in sudden embarrassment that Otto found his voice.

"You were my first."

Ell looked up at him, brows arched in confusion.

"First…?"

"My first kiss." Now it was Otto who looked away, dropping her hand and shrugging his shoulders. "I didn't…I-" Sighing, he rubbed his forehead as he studied the floor. Shocked into silence, Ell could only watch. When the moment stretched too long she found herself reaching out to him but twitched her hand back when he suddenly raised his head, determination once again in his gaze. "That's how you know."

Ell stared at him through unguarded eyes, sense and desire warring in her mind. They desired each other, but could barely stand each other. She had assumed that with his attitude he was as experienced as she, but that was his _first_ kiss? The warmth that spread through her stomach whenever she remembered his lips on hers was enough to attest of his as of yet undeveloped skills, but still. She couldn't take advantage of this, could she? And anyways, they just…they just couldn't…could they?

"I can't take advantage of you like this." The words ripped from her heart, unbidden, and as soon as they left her mouth Ell wished she could take them back. If only she didn't desire him so damn much…

Silence lay thick and unmoving in the classroom.

"Hmph. Taking advantage of me? You don't know who you're talking to, little girl." Ell's head shot up, assisted by Otto's fingers that met underneath her jaw as he brought her gaze to meet his. He had taken off his goggles and the fragility and passion in his unguarded eyes made her catch her breath. They undermined everything he was saying – his voice spoke of machismo, but his eyes brimmed with insecurity. "I just need experience. I can hold my own, especially against you. And that's the deal. Experience. We both get what we both want, with no consequences. I learn how to be physical, and you can act on your desires." Ell bristled at this, but stilled as he brushed his lips against hers. Those eyes. She was absolutely undone. To his surprise, she leaned into the kiss, slowly melding her lips against his, silently urging him to do the same. In moments his arms encircled her while her thumbs found his cheekbones and then they were lost in each other's embrace.

* * *

Twister looked balefully at Reggie as she slurped on her shake and spun on her stool. He still had cotton balls up his nose and she was clearly enjoying every minute of his discomfort, although it could be debated that the sudden cessation of tension between them had something to do with that as well. She snuck a glance at him, snorted, and spun again. Twister gestured helplessly at Tito, manning the counter at The Shore Shack while Raymundo took a turn flipping burgers. Tito, having had his fair share of serious nosebleeds in his past (most connected in some way shape or form to Raymundo, actually) sympathized with Twister.

"Hey little cuz, maybe you should see if your father needs help in the kitchen."

"Huh? Raymundo never wants us in the kitchen!"

Tito shot Twister a look. Twister shut up.

Reggie, who had actually been about to announce a trip to the bathroom laughed once more at Twister's poor, sweet face and patted him on the shoulder before tripping off to the kitchen. Tito could not help but shake his head at Twister's sudden uplift in spirits.

"So I hear you're passing all your classes. Well done little brudda."

"Yeah, thanks Tito."

"Your parents must be very proud."

Twister shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah, although now they want me to do even better. Before, all they thought I could do was surf and film things. Now they want me to get A's." Tito snorted at Twister's look of despair. To ask about school was one thing, yet he didn't need to ask how the filming was going. Twister was now filming almost constantly, at The Shack or the Pier or at Madtown, even on the ocean. Most of it was Otto, sure, but he had definitely started to move on to other things –less action-packed situations (such as customers at The Shack in a variety of scenarios), school events, and even nature.

"So… we haven't seen much of Otto recently. Or Sam, but of course it's 'cuz he's taking those classes… well we mostly just see you and Reggie, really. And your Ell friend." That was true, Twister and Reggie had started coming to The Shack after school around the same time – after Reggie had worked on The 'Zine and Twister on a filming project he was undergoing for the Art teacher, Mrs. Cork. Ell would practice her cello after school and then meet up with them as they left – of course, this was on the few days that Twister was not beholden to go film Otto, and attempt to interact with his new crowd.

"…Yeah. He's kinda doing his own things now, a lot. He doesn't want to hang with the three of us anymore…"

"And is that totally a bad thing? If he did, he'd notice how much you cherish his sister."

Twister gaped at him. Tito suddenly had the sinking feeling that Twister hadn't realized his own emotions yet. That, or he didn't know what the word "cherish" meant. "You do know that you're in lo-"

"You KNEW?! Does everyone?! Does _Raymundo?_ Am I that obvious?!"

Well scratch that. Apparently Twister wasn't _that _oblivious.

"Calm down little brudda. I don't think Raymundo knows. I haven't told him." In fact, Tito would venture to guess Raymundo really didn't know. The man could be a little oblivious about some things...or most things...

Twister slumped down in relief. He didn't think Raymundo would like that he was in love with Reggie. He himself didn't think he was smart or _anything_ enough for Reggie, how would her father take it?

"Have you told her?"

"No! I mean, no. I mean, how could I? I haven't told anyone! Anyway, it's impossible. She's _Reggie._ And I'm Twister."

Tito was reminded of the days of his youth when Raymundo was pining after Danni. Before he had gotten up the nerve to ask her on their first date, he had moped for months swearing that he wasn't good enough for her. But then he had finally asked her (to be frank, Tito subtly shoved him into her when both were holding red drinks and wearing khakis and in the ensuing confusion, suggested Raymundo take her out to dinner to make up for the damage) and within a year the two were married. Wonders never ceased.

"Twister…it is as the ancient Hawaiians say: _He who throws the first coconut forfeits the choice of the consequences."_

To say Twister adopted his confused visage was an understatement. Taking pity on the boy (and to be honest, no one ever understood his wisdom here) he was about to explain his actions when Twister slowly spoke, as if still cognitively working it out. "Does that mean…that all I can do is tell Reggie, and that no matter what I think, she'll make her own decision?"

Tito's mouth fell open in shock. Holy Mother of the Island where did_ that _come from? "Uhhh yeah. Yeah, exactly."

Twister nodded. "I guess you're right, Tito. Thanks." Seeing the kitchen door swing open, he smiled at Reggie, and in that moment, Tito understood many things. Not least of all was how Reggie could possibly return Twister's affections, even with the cotton balls still jammed up his nose.

"Twister! I have an idea." Running over to his chair, she spun it around so that he was looking at her. Shooting Tito an apologetic glance, she continued. "Sorry Tito, but Dad was talking and I suddenly got The Idea." She paused a moment for dramatic effect and then announced, "Twister, you're going to work with me on The 'Zine."

"Uhh Reggie… I don't think you want me to write for you. It's not going to end too good."

"No Twist, you're going to film for me!"

"Huh?"

"It's going to be like that project we did for the athletic presentation at YAF over the summer, remember?"

"I still don't…are we interviewing Rocket boy?"

"I don't know yet. I don't know whether we'd do something athletic, or artistic or musical…or just a general piece on something going on at Ocean Shores. We can brainstorm. Whatever we do, it should be able to represent Ocean Shores. Are you in?"

Twister took time only to smile at Reggie. "Of course."

Reggie smiled back; almost oblivious to the fact that Tito was standing right there, watching them. He had to turn away to hide a secret smile of his own. They didn't even _know_ that their hearts were in their eyes… Calling out their goodbyes, the two turned to split, leaving Tito to the trickling stream of customers. He sighed as he watched the teens run out, chattering away. Raymundo had been so sure Reggie would end up with Sam. Oh well. At least it wasn't Lars…

* * *

"Otto?"

"Mm."

She shot him her best Serious Look, but the small grin dancing around her mouth lessened its severity. "I hope you don't think you're always going to win like this."

They were walking out of the school almost an hour late, not holding hands and looking straight ahead but totally focused on each other anyways. Ell was still recovering from the power of his kisses (she couldn't imagine what the rest would be like if kissing him on and off for an hour was all she could handle at the moment) and Otto was trying very hard to keep the rapid-fire fluttering in his stomach to a manageable level.

The grin he and Twister had patented the summer they turned 14 (Devil-may-care in all its hot adolescent male glory) made her knees weak.

"We'll see."

* * *

Heh heh. I have no little notes for you guys, except for maybe a general catch up of what I've been doing. So I'm gonna' lay it out for you. I've finished up until chapter 9, and am working on chapter 10, which I think is cough the chapter we've all been waiting for. Not sure what I'm gonna' do after that. But 9 and 10 are going to be The Christmas Bonanza, as I have already said, so they will go up together. So. Enjoy!

Ohhh also. I recently figured out that Raymunod married again, blah blah wellllll I did not know that when I started all this up, and I certainly never watched anything where he even interacted with another female (that I remember. In all honesty, the only episode I remember in its entirety is the Fiji Flu one. Do not ask.) So my story is clearly not canon, and there you have it. The End.


	9. Ch 8: Idiocy and Hats That Break Hearts

**Chapter 8: I Plead Idiocy/Manning The Clasp/Hats That Break Hearts**

**(I am so mad I cannot even **_**think**_**…This changes everything. **_**Everything**_**.)**

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Don't own Rocket Power.

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Christmas was only a week and a half away, and the Baby Jesus only knew what Twister was going to do about it. Interestingly enough, his problem was an unfamiliar one. He already knew what he was giving everyone, and the gifts he was giving to his parents, Raymundo and Tito (a short "scrapbook" film on the Rocket gang's adventures from when they were kids, or in his parents' case pictures and interactions between him and Lars) had long been completed. He got The Squid the quintessential guy present – a tie, to make up for the one he had stretched beyond future use a month back. He was giving Ell a cd with a cellist on the cover that he had gotten for a white elephant gift from his cousin Clio (it was unopened, so he didn't feel so bad about re-gifting or anything) and to Otto he was giving the athletic gloves he had been eyeing since his last ones fell to shreds. Reggie's present…he gave a furtive glance at it, lying innocently on his bed. Well, that was taken care of at least. How she would respond to it he didn't know, but Ell had told him it was a good idea, and that she'd never talk to him again if he didn't man up and give it to her (he had finally confided in her about his feelings for Reggie a little while ago, and while she swore to keep it a secret, she was always on his case now about it). Yet here was where his problem lay – _how _was he going to give it to her?

It had been almost a month since the return of Ottoman. Almost a month since Otto had practically shrugged off his shoobies, replaced his overbearing attitude with his more familiar if not lovable cocky one, and expected the old gang to be together at most (as all was situationally impossible) times. Of course things couldn't go back entirely to normal: Sam was practically in college, Reg was completing her college applications and finishing up the 'Zine supplemental she and Twister had been working on, and Twister was still filming anything and everything. Not to mention the addition of Ell. But for a little while, it looked like everything was back to normal. Otto walked to school every morning with his best bro and older sis, hung out with them after at The Shack, and generally raised mayhem the way only they knew how. His followers dropped off, and the fan girls receded to an manageable level. What Twister had been dreaming of for months had finally happened – he had his best bro back.

So why the strange feeling of unease? Maybe because in a way he wasn't _totally_ back. Or maybe it was because he was a little _too_ back to normal, too quickly, for no foreseeable reason. Reggie in particular worried about _why_ he was back to normal. What had happened? Ell said nothing, but how could she? She hadn't known the old Otto. And while it was great that his best bro was back with him to pull pranks, argue for hours, and rock the athletic scene with, it felt a little strange to suddenly regress to their 11 year old relationships. Not that Twister saw it that way. All he knew was that since Otto was back he was happy, but at the same time, he missed being with Reggie. They didn't hang out the same way they had all throughout Otto's defection mostly because Otto got kind of weird when they did. In his mind, they were still his best bro and sister, and even though they spent the summer together (and the last couple months, really) their relationship shouldn't have changed. Yet it had, and now all of them, even Sam who was not there as often but had to deal with the simmering tensions nevertheless, were affected by it.

He had tried to bring all this up to Ell, who was usually pretty good at understanding his incoherency, but even that hadn't gone too well. Anytime he tried to talk about Otto, she got a strange look on her face, like she felt guilty or something. She was fine to talk about Reggie with, she had even helped him pick out the present and everything, but anytime Otto came up, the conversation always (somehow) ended up being about something else. Twister didn't blame her too much. Otto had been pretty harsh to her for a while, even if he was pretty much better now. But all that was beside the point. The point was Christmas was coming up soon, and even though he had the present all ready for rocket girl (and maybe even a confession, he wasn't too sure about that yet, even if Ell said it certainly wasn't a _bad_ idea…) he had no way of giving it to her. They had forgotten (a little) just how much of a control freak Otto could be, and he was determined to have a real Christmas Party this year, instead of the customary ski trip/Annual Rocket Christmas Festivities (that Twister always inevitably crashed). This year he wanted the Rocket Family Christmas, plus family friends (like the Rodriguez family and Mrs. Dullard and Sam) but also regular friends, like Sherry, Trish, and Trent. He had even graciously given his permission to invite Ell, seeing as she was so close to his three closest homies, and had no where else to be on Christmas.

Twister had yet to come up with a plan on how to give Reggie her gift with everyone there. It wasn't just Otto's presence presenting the problem this time, but all of their parents as well. Yes, Tito knew, but Raymundo didn't and neither did Twister's parents. And _Lars_. _Oh Dios mio,_ if Lars knew, he'd get whomped to the next year! And anyways. This was not the sort of gift one could give in front of everyone…it was supposed to be special, and forget publicity, it was absolutely humiliating even in the most private of circumstances! Twister shook his head. He had, as Ell was fond of saying, to man up. He didn't have to tell Reggie that he was nigh in love with her, but he did have to give her the present, if simply to show that she meant a lot to him. They only had a few days of school left before the break, and when that ended, their alone time would be cut down even further, if Otto kept up his current trend of monopolizing their time. Maybe he should just give it to her while they were finishing up the 'Zine video? But that way he felt guilty, as if he were betraying Otto or something…not that he had ever talked about it with Otto, but he had the vague idea that Otto would not be too supportive of him liking Reggie, let alone attempting to portray his taboo feelings in a gift. Twister sighed (for what felt like the 10th time in 10 minutes) as he fingered her present. He himself knew he was not the sharpest crayon in the box (or was it brightest tool in the shed?) but he hoped he could figure out something. Oh well. Even if it all went wrong, he supposed he could just plead being an idiot.

* * *

Ell frowned in concentration as she splayed her hand down the neck of her cello in order to hit the dreaded octave passage. She had been practicing it for over twenty minutes now, and soon she would have to leave it or risk sore muscles. Concentrate. Breathe. She began again at the beginning (_one last time_) she told herself, and grinned grimly when she hit it. Good. Now onto the Elgar.

Ell had been playing the cello since she was 12 years old. Her cello (named Didrik, in honor of the Uncle who had given it to her) had seen her through her many moves, always being there for her when the people in her life seemed to come and go. In fact, she had been performing in her first concert (the Prelude to Bach's 1st cello suite) the night everything changed: her family halved, and her comfortable, understandable, sedentary lifestyle came to an end.

Just the thought made her tighten her grip on her bow, and it skittered on the string. Cursing under her breath, she sighed, collapsed over Didrik for a moment to reorient herself, and began again at the beginning.

Otto, who had been surreptitiously listening for the last 5 minutes or so, wondered why he wasn't bored yet. It was still 20 minutes until they had agreed to meet, and if she had known he was there she'd probably have cut her practice session short, but still he felt reluctant to make his presence known. On one hand, he understood the need for practice. It was the same with his skating, biking, boarding, hockey, surfing, and sundry other athletics that he undertook. Yet on the other hand, classical music generally bored him to tears. Tito had a cd of classical vocalists he liked to listen to when he alone was running The Shack (Raymundo flatly refused to listen to it) and all Otto knew was that it put him to sleep within minutes. This, obviously, was different. Maybe he just liked the cello more than Josh Groban, but it felt more interesting when Ell was playing. Of course, that might just be because he himself was rather interested in Ell, but he decided to gloss over that. Largely because Ell was staring at him. Damn. He was discovered.

Sauntering over like he hadn't just been listening to her play for the last 10 minutes he cracked her a smile and pretended to examine her music. Ell hid a smirk and poked at his fingers with her bow every time they threatened to alight anywhere on her. Huffing in mild frustration, Otto scowled until Ell relented, giggled, and setting her bow down on the stand in front of her pulled him in for a kiss. Otto tried not to sigh in contentment but it was hard. He had had a long day, and it still felt so damn good just to kiss her. He had been running the gang like mad so that they wouldn't find out anything, and even with his boundless energy he was beginning to feel its effects. But it was worth it. Oh, it was worth it.

"Otto?"

"Mm?"

"I have to put my cello away. So we can kiss more."

"Hmmm." He pulled away, watching her pack the cello away in its case, covered in stickers. He was fiddling with the elastic strap of his glasses (wondering if it was too indictive simply to take it off) when Ell broached, as she usually did once a liaison, The Question.

"You know, uh, it would make everything so much easier if we just told…"

"I thought we agreed to keep it a secret."

"Yeah, but what about Reggie, Twister, and Sam? Sam won't tell anyone, and neither would Twister. And if we both asked Reggie would keep it quiet. Maybe even from your dad."

Otto cocked his head. She was always so sure Twister was good at keeping secrets. Why?

"Ell if we tell one person, we tell them all. Are you ready to let everyone know that we've been together for a month now?" Otto didn't think so. He knew she had her secrets…that accent she adopted the night they first kissed, for one thing. Although he had never asked about it, the matter hung between them sometimes, like the sword suspended above the bed in that medieval story he had to read last year. Except his name wasn't Gawaine. And they weren't in medieval times.

Ell sighed. She honestly was beginning to care less than he thought. Yeah it would be awkward, but awkward had been done before. The only thing holding her back now was the memory of someone precious to her, who had, in a way, occupied a similar position to the one Otto now held. Well, not exactly the same. But still. The similarities between their personalities were uncanny, and that both of them were important people to her worried her. Was she a glutton for punishment?

"Fine. You're right." She had agreed, but Otto could tell something was still troubling her. Misunderstanding, he sought to repair the damage.

"But I guess we could start…we're having a Christmas party at The Shack, and I told Reggie I'd invite you myself. And if that didn't work that she could. But you should just say yes to me. You said your dad won't be coming over…and that your Aunt is too eccentric to really leave the apartment so just come over yourself!"

Ell had finished packing up her cello and suddenly went very still. For a variety of reasons, Christmas was the most dangerous day of the year for her, especially in terms of past memories. Yet this year, it was her day of freedom. Unfortunately that was not what stilled her. What shocked her was the fact that this Christmas was the day she had been dreaming of for years, and yet for the last few weeks she had utterly forgotten its importance.

Ell had been with plenty of guys before Otto, guys her own age and even a man a few years older. Never a boy younger than her. But here she was, acting like a love struck fool for _Otto Rocket_, a boy that still managed to annoy her, even as his physical attentions made her forget her ire. She glanced up at him, and was subtly bemused to see a face he very rarely let her see – something between a puppy-like hopeful excitement, and the corresponding struggle to look confident, manly, and in control. Ell grinned and hung her head, even as her heart leaped. Damn. This changed things, didn't it. "_But I guess we could start…" _Well, maybe she could start too. Maybe tell him a little thing. Or maybe just one thing. Not everything, not at once. Maybe she'd just tell him that Christmas was her-

"Ellllllllllllllllllll." Otto was rocking back and forth in her chair, acting a bit like a monkey. He hadn't liked her serious faces, and he hoped this was the way to bring her out of her stupor. Laughing, Ell grasped the back of his chair, steadied it, and leaned over him to kiss him fervently. The monkey impression abruptly stopped as Otto put his hands on her head to hold her close to him, yet the kiss lasted only a moment. Pulling back, she sighed, smiled, and admitted she had no previous plans for Christmas, so she _might as well_ spend it with her friends. Otto smiled. That was maybe as close as she'd ever get to telling him her feelings, but hell, at the moment, it was enough. This time, he pulled her in for a deep kiss, which led, rather dangerously (as it was only about an hour after school got out, and while students generally avoided the music room at all costs, one never knew who was still wandering about), to something a bit more scandalous. Kissing evolved to touching, which sparked soft moans and uneven breathing. Eventually they found the floor, and clothes began to find themselves strictly superfluous. They had gone this far before, and Otto was comfortable taking the lead, although he still had to fight a bit with The Clasp, or what was at the moment The Bane Of His Existence. To put it simply, his lips had already traced her mouth, face and neck thoroughly and now wanted new territory to explore. Her lips had reciprocated, and her hands were now tracing his well-toned body, making it much more difficult to focus on freeing her – ah. There it was. Otto's breath came in a rush as he bent his head to kiss the crevice in between her breasts, and he could feel her tugging off his glasses, which were rubbing against her curves. Calloused hand cupped pale orb as his thumb brushed softly over a semi-erect nipple. Ell's head tilted back as she hummed with desire, and neither noticed a presence just outside the door.

* * *

Reggie hummed as she walked back to her locker, 'Zine materials in hand. They weren't exactly done, but Twister had begged off about 10 minutes ago, saying he had to finish something. Or at least, that's what she assumed. Whatever his fault, Twister Rodriguez was not a mumbler or a blusher, and of that she had just seen plenty. That, and as he left the poor little cupboard that served as her office he had glanced nervously out into the hall. Twister was often insensitive, always an idiot, but almost never was he paranoid. Clearly, something was up. She would have to ask him sometime when Otto wasn't there and-

What was this? Reggie backtracked as she passed a rarely trod hallway that led to the music room. It was dark, quiet, and perfectly inconspicuous save for the familiar brown and yellow striped hat, hanging on the doorknob of the music room. Reggie frowned as she approached. Although Twister was much more comfortable taking his hat off now than he was a boy, he almost never did without protest. And to hang it on a doorknob? What was that boy thinking? Reggie reached out to take it, when a sudden gasp made her stop. The sound was sexually charged, coming from behind the door, and unmistakably feminine. Frozen in shock, Reggie's mind began to work against itself. Twister had an older brother. Said older brother (Lars) was in college. A common college tradition was to put a sock or other article of clothing on a door handle to signify actions of an intimate nature within were occurring. Lars had recently been home for the weekend, and Twister hadn't gotten whomped too badly in a long time. They were brothers. They had to talk about something. Conclusion: Twister was in there. Twister was in there, and he had just made_ someone_ _who was not Regina Rocket moan._

Reggie turned and ran. Forgetting all about her locker, coat, and keys that were inside said article of clothing she ran out of the building, 'Zine materials in hand, into the snow. After coming to its horrible, unspeakable conclusion, Reggie's mind was mercifully silent. Her heart, however, was not. Each painful thump against her chest brought home the realization that Twister didn't have romantic feelings for her, and she was in love with him.

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Ahhhhh here we go drama, drama, drama. Also, realization for poor Reggie (yes yes it took her far too long I agree). Yet this is where I get into one of my troubles – being too detached. Does it take away from the emotional power of the scene? Especially in the next two chapters. Which aren't there yet, but believe me, they will be. If you have any thoughts about writing styles, and critiques, I will be more than happy to listen (especially on this point).

In other news, Kentucky likes to gossip with his boys more than I do with my friends. This surprises me as otherwise, he's pretty much a bastion of manliness. And he is southern. That is all.


	10. Ch 9: Christmas, Part 1

**Chapter 9: Christmas Part 1 – In Which You Learn An Absolutely Ridiculous Name **

**(Why does everyone hate each other? What did I miss?)**

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If I owned it, would I be writing fanfic about it? (cough no cough)

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Review time!

Dear **hmm**: (love your name, darling) Yes yes it does and yes yes this chapter willlllll answer thy question **Linables:** As for hotness, I hope you're not too disappointed – I have to change the rating soon for cursing and mayyyyybe actions of a far more deliciously sexual nature. You'll see. **PJ101:** Hurrah for you with two reviews. And yes I feel very bad for poor Sam but he was the character I remembered least so there you have it. **Annieluwho**_**:**_ Short, sweet, to the point. Love it. Annnnnnnd **Daisy617:** My paragraph writer. Rambles or no, I thank you for your review! (I actually thank all of you, btw, if that wasn't too explicitly stated).

Woot. Time to go.

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The day before Christmas dawned cold and clear, yet tension was in the air for Sam Dullard, trapped between Reggie and Ell as they made an afternoon excursion to The Shack. He was currently caught in the crossfire of something akin to passive fury and total bewilderment, and as even-tempered as he was, it was beginning to take its toll. What bothered Sam the most was actually not the existence of strong feelings, but the sudden change to animosity (at least on Reggie's part. Ell's confusion had been stable stemming from about a week ago.) It was Sam that Reggie had eventually told about her heartbreak, mainly because she had locked herself out of her house and couldn't bear to go back into the school to get her keys, and none of her other friends could be found. She hadn't cried, exactly. Reggie Rocket was far too proud for that, but by that same vein he could see how much it cost her to admit that she was in love with Twister Rodriguez, of all people, and he didn't like her back.

Yet this is where Sam got lost. From what he had seen, (and what Ell had subtly and then not-so-subtly implied) Twister more than reciprocated. In fact, Sam was under the firm belief that Twister thought Reggie hung the freaking moon. The circumstances seemed suspicious to him, and although he had mentioned this once, twice, or five hundred times to Reggie, it didn't seem to pierce consciousness. But last night _something_ had. An offhand comment had changed Reggie's mood from merely depressed to It's-Time-For-Them-To-Die. He had muttered something along the lines of, "But the _music room_? Why on earth would Twister get physical with someone (and I still don't think he did, mind you) in the music room?"

Which led them to the current situation. The festivities were to begin at 6:30, when the Rodriguez family got back from mass. It was now about 4:45, and why Reggie was making them go to The Shack this early with her seemed ominous. Especially as The Shack was currently closed for the holidays (until 5:30, when Tito and Raymundo would start cooking for the party), and Raymundo and Otto were waiting for Reggie to get home from "caroling." Sam wasn't sure what was going on, exactly, but he had a very bad feeling about all this.

Ell walked in silence, torn between confusion at Reggie's sudden demand, and embarrassment with a dash of anxiety at her current situation. It wasn't just that Twister caught them a week ago in the music room. She was too guilty to tell him how stupidly he had reacted – after all, he had put his hat on the doorknob, and that could only mean one thing. No, it was more than that. Last night her father had called from his cell phone, and as far as she knew, he didn't have cell coverage in Antarctica. That meant he was most likely in one of two places – home, visiting her mother's family (highly unlikely, as they hadn't spoken in oh, 5 years?) or here. Maybe not California, but America nonetheless. That could be very bad. One of the main reasons Ell had chosen to live here was because she wanted to escape from the ghosts of her past. Yet it was the living "ghost" that she had the hardest time separating from – herself. Her identity as a foreigner had been her defining characteristic throughout her teen years, even with no trace of an accent, because her father was so damn proud about being different. He didn't understand that to speak her native tongue (not her father's, who was raised in West London) brought back all the painful memories of losing the two people she loved the most, save her father, in quick succession. She had long since decided she no longer wanted to be who she used to be, Eydis Bryndisardottir, because she wanted to be someone totally different. Someone with no ties to an outdated country where half of her family lay buried in old, old soil.

Ell came to herself as Reggie unlocked The Shack. Reggie stationed herself behind the counter, and motioned for Sam and Ell to take a seat. She took a deep breath.

"Alright. Sam, I've asked you to be here to mediate, as you are apprised of the situation. Ell. Why didn't you tell me you were with Twister?"

Sam and Ell's jaws dropped in tandem. Sam started to sputter while Ell could say nothing. In English, at any rate. The shock made her revert and for a moment, all she could think of was _hvað (what)?!_

"You have nothing to say for yourself?"

Ell shook her head. "What…are you _talking _about?!"

"I'm talking about you and Twister. How long, Ell."

Ell squinted in disbelief. "We're not…Reg, Twister and I are _not_ together. Are you out of your mind?"

Reggie slammed her hands down on the table. "Ell! I was outside the music room, ok?! I heard you guys in there! Fucking admit it!"

Sam was shocked by the look that flashed across her face – not guilt, exactly, but something suspiciously related to it. Then she closed her eyes.

Alright. NOW she wished she had tore into him for his stupidity. Really Twister? The _doorknob_? "Reggie, no. That wasn't Twister."

"_Yeah,_ he just left his hat on the door. That's what he does."

"Reggie, listen to me. It wasn't Twister! Yeah, I was with someone in the music room, cuz we figured we wouldn't be interrupted there, but-"

"HE LEFT HIS HAT ON THE DOOR HOW STUPID DO YOU THINK I AM?" Now she was crying. She was so angry and upset she couldn't help it anymore, and Sam and Ell could only stare in shock.

"Reggie, please listen, don't-"

"Then who was it?" Ell turned to look at Sam, while Reggie tried to hide her face with her hands. For a moment Ell could only stare at him helplessly. She opened and shut her mouth like a fish, grasping for words she could use to diffuse the situation. If she told them flat out, she and Otto would be over. But this was Reggie, one of her closest friends, and she and Twister had been subtly angling after each other since this summer. Sighing, her head fell into her hands, and she began to mumble, "It was-"

"Reggie? Kids? What are you guys doing at here? I thought you were caroling…" Raymundo strolled into the war zone, blithely. Reggie had turned her back to Ell to dry her eyes, and she now turned around, cool and terrible, if slightly red-rimmed around the eyes.

"Nothing Raymundo." Sam noticed the panic in Ell's eyes as Raymundo walked in. Insanely, an impossible thought drifted up from the nether regions of his unconscious. It couldn't possibly be…but it _would_ explain the hat…

"Well then, uh, I gotta clear you guys out for a bit, but I'll see you guys at 6." With that, Sam and Ell were ushered from the counter, and a confused Raymundo's eyes followed after his daughter, who angrily strode off in the direction of home without waiting for either of her friends. As soon as she and Raymundo were out of earshot, Sam and Ell looked at each other.

"It wasn't _Otto_, was it?"

Ell's panicked expression told all, but her sputtering didn't hurt. "How…you…it…oh god. I-uh…" She took a deep breath. "How did you know?"

Sam blinked. Holy Flipswitch 360 he was _right?_ "Well uh…I wasn't exactly sure. I guess it kinda fits though. Otto's the only person Twister would intentionally do that for…and of course you can't admit it in front of Raymundo. And Otto's sudden return to normalcy _was_ rather suspicious. I assume that's when the two of you guys got together? Why didn't you tell us?"

"I wanted to, but he was so sold on secrecy…I mean, I understand keeping it from the school and everything, but you guys should know." She paused. "I was going to tell her though, right then. Even if it meant ending things with Otto. Twister's in love with her Sam, he told me. I mean, really in love with her. He's beyond upset that she hasn't talked to him for a week now, and for fuck's sake. She honestly thinks he could like me?! Or that I could like him? Does she not have EYES? What the hell is _wrong_ with her?"

Sam shook his head. "Uh, could you go back to the part where you're secretly seeing Otto?"

Ell sighed. This was going to be a long Christmas.

* * *

From the moment they had opened the door (flushed and whispering and generally far too happy to be innocent of some sin or another) and Twister's hat had fallen to the floor, he had known change was coming. They assumed that Twister had seen, and he had. They hadn't talked about what it meant yet, as Twister was sworn to secrecy by both of them. Yet he certainly wasn't happy about it. Ell had received several earfuls from him, generally in science class, but was able to deflect most of his anger by attempting to apply salve to the open wounds of another anxiety – Reggie's studied avoidance of him, hearkening back from that misadventurous afternoon. It was Otto who bore the brunt of Twister's disbelief. He clearly remembered the argument the day after discovery, walking home from school.

At first, Twister had said nothing, merely plodding along in silence, staring straight ahead.

That of course drove Otto nuts. "Oh come on, man, why are you so mad about it? Isn't it better than fighting with her?"

Twister frowned. He couldn't exactly articulate why he was so mad, but he had a hazy idea that it had something to do with betrayal, loyalty, and how secrets generally worked against the latter and for the former. "You kept a secret from _me,_ man. I thought we were best bros."

"We _are._ We kept this from everyone! We thought it would be better for no one to know…cuz we hated each other and all."

"That's everyone. I'm your best bro. Or at least I thought I was."

Otto stopped, causing the taller boy to halt as well. "Twist…argh. Ok. I'm sorry. I guess…I kinda wanted to have a secret from you guys, even though you're my best bro, and Reg is my sister…well you know. I mean, since this summer you guys came back and were different, and I wasn't. That's kind of why I acted like a jerk all this time, too. Keeping this a secret made me feel different, and not bad that…that I'm not in college, like The Squid, or like you and Reg."

Twister's eyes widened. No…Otto didn't know, did he? "Like me and Reggie? What do you mean?"

Otto shook his head in frustration. "I don't know exactly. Older? More focused? I don't know, but ever since you guys got back this summer it just feels different around you two. Especially when you two are together. Like you've left the Rocket world and are heading off to…gahhh jeez. Adult Land or something."

Twister fought down the seductive urge to literally interpret the sentence. He'd dream about Adult Land later, but for now, he had to forgive his best bro. The switch from hurt to forgiveness was sudden, yes, but Otto's words made Twister remember that he too had a secret, and if betrayal was the name of the game, he would undoubtedly be King. He was in love with Otto's sister, after all.

Slinging an arm around Otto's shoulders Twister pulled his best bro along. "Ok, Otto-man. I understand. And I won't tell anyone."

Otto was slightly stunned by Twister's easy acceptance. "Uh...what? I mean, good. I mean, are you sure?"

"Yeah." Twister grinned. "Now…what do you say to some boarding before it gets dark?"

* * *

All through mass (Twisters family was of the Christmas and Easter Catholic variety), Twister had worried about what Ell had deemed The Situation. Reggie had been ignoring him for over a week now, and he couldn't figure out why. Ell couldn't either, as Reggie absolutely refused to talk about him at all. A week ago he had stressed about how to give her the present. Now, he worried about being able to give it to her at all. What had he done? How could he get her to talk to him again? He hadn't thought it was possible, but Reggie not being there with him was even worse than Otto's semi-recent behavior. Twister sighed. So this was love?

He was walking out to the car with his papi (Lars and his mom had driven separately, as Lars had come straight from college and their mom decided to go with him and perhaps trick him into talking about the college girls he may or may not be illicitly interacting with) when he got the text. It was from Ell. It was urgent.

_Twist, get here. Bring the gift. Prepare to tell her everything._ _EVERYTHING_. _Even about…you know what. _

Twister frowned. Everything? That was a pretty tall order for him. Especially coming from Ell, who knew the sad state of his science grade, to say the least. In fact if it was knowledge Reggie wanted, she'd be way better off going to-oh. OH. _You know what…_ oh. Was that what Reggie was mad about? Confused as he was, Twister imagined he could feel his heart physically cracking, if not breaking in half. So she knew… knew that he was in love with her, and that's why she was acting like this. Of course she would. She was _Reggie_: smart, beautiful, talented, athletic, practical…and generally the most amazing girl he had ever known. Why on earth would she have gone for him, Twister Rodriguez, a failure? All he could do was skate, surf, and film. She could have someone who was good at _everything_, someone who wasn't just barely passing all his classes. No wonder she was keeping her distance…on top of all her other virtues, she was a good friend. The best of friends. Even knowing he loved her, she didn't want to hurt him _too _badly by breaking his heart outright. Twister rested his forehead against the cool window. _Gracias a Dios_ his father was too interested in singing along with the Christmas songs on the radio, ("I'm…._dreaming_…of a whiiiiiiiiiiite Christmas…") to notice his son's consternation. Sighing, Twister made his resolve. He would give himself the rest of the car ride to mourn for what he so desperately wanted yet could never have. Then he would go to Reg and tell her the truth, so that she could at least respect him for telling her. He could admit it, tell her to forget all about it, and then they could be friends again. He would tell her that of course he had never expected her to reciprocate, and that he wanted was for things to move on naturally. Not back to the ways things were, as that was impossible, but at least to a more neutral level. A level where they could talk normally (if not joke as intimately as they were used to), and they could still figure in each other's lives. At least on a superficial level. And…well, on the level of the gift as well. That was important, broken heart or no. The gift was not merely a romantic gesture, but an earnest one as well – if she turned _this _down…well, Twister would have to reassess the situation then. It wasn't ideal, but it was all he could do.

_Maldita sea. _ This was the worst Christmas ever.

* * *

**Words not related to above story:**

The time has come for some serious talk, my friends. It has been a long, semi-arduous journey since I began this, (I'm thinking October/November 09. Maybe November. Obviously I didn't post it for a bit) and I have to say, the sense of completion is gratifying. What? You say. This is not finished! And you are correct. I have another, much longer chapter just ahead for you all. And even when you read that you will still say Hrmm? This doesn't seem too much more finished to _me._ (Or a variant, of course). And I shall say ha ha ha, in an evil way. I know.

The main point of the above blabbers is this: I started the previous 20,000 words in order to accomplish a goal. I have achieved it. I did not start out with a plot in mind, and I'm not sure how much you think you got but let me tell you it is not much. This will make so much more sense when you have read the 10th chapter. Let me try again. I'm not sure if there is going to be any more of this story. There are a few things I want to tie up, and I have proposed a summer supplement to chronicle a few instances (before it would have given too much away) that now would add to the fun, I suppose. So there might be a few more chapters. I make no promises tho. I see no way I could end this monolith (I deem it such yet am humbled by the 100,000 word stories with 40-50 chapters in the Avatar section dear GOD) in just one chapter, which is all I kinda want to do now. So give me some time, folks. (Now watch inspiration hits and it's done in a week haha). Now, on to the pseudo-last chapter, and thank you for reading

I have a headache,

Myself

Ps. You know what I have stuck in my head right now? Foss's Time Cycle. You know what I hate right now? Foss's Time Cycle. Look this shit up, ladies and gents. It's "music." Kind of. Pointilism. Graaaaah why on earth does my orchestra have to play this BS?


	11. Ch 10: Christmas, Part 2

**Chapter 10: Christmas Part 2 – The stratagem/**_**Islenska**_**/The Key To Their Hearts**

**("Goodbye baby. Just want you to know – I didn't want it to end this way**_**."**_**)**

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All I own is sadness at my lack of reviews on this and especially my latest one shot (85 people look at it, and no one reviews? Travesty). That means I own no nicktoons.

* * *

Tito shivered as he glanced back at the little cuzzes, left behind at The Shack. Their official reason for departure was because the Sandy and Raoul Rodriguez had invited all the adults over for some liquid Christmas Cheer, but in truth all the adults simply wanted to get away from the uncomfortable miasma of tension between the teens. Trent and Trish had left right after dinner, mostly because they couldn't handle Reggie's simmering rage. Lars had taken off too, ostensibly to hang with his friends, but really to call the girl whose existence he had so skillfully shielded from his mother's previous prying. Sherry had been coming late to begin with, and was expected any moment, really, unless Sam had warned her against coming during the long phone call he had made earlier. Ell and Reggie were not speaking, and Tito felt that there lay the source of the issue, yet even that in itself was confusing. For instance, why would Sam align himself with Ell? And why was Otto trying so hard to keep himself and Twister away from the girls? Most importantly, why was Reggie avoiding _Twister_?

"Hey Tito! Hurry up! It's cold out here, and we need to celebrate without the kids!" Tito nodded distractedly, and hurried to catch up with his best friend and business partner. Something was going to go down tonight, and for the first time, he wasn't sure what the outcome would be. He huffed. So much for his vaunted Hawaiian wisdom…

* * *

It was hell. Reggie hadn't looked at him all night, and showed no indication of letting up her icy aloofness. Since the adults had left Otto had attempted to get everybody to hang together, but nothing he tried was working. Reggie hadn't spoken more than five words in a row to Twist all evening, and more surprisingly, neither had Ell. He had briefly tired earlier, yet the look on Ell's face had actually made him take a physical step back. Something had happened, and now that the adults were no longer pushing events along by either making conversation or food, it seemed as if confrontation was imminent. Yet by now Twister had reached his limit. He obviously couldn't do anything here, not with the weirdness and his best bro in the way. He knew where the spare key to the Rocket residence was – he would sneak in, and leave the present on her bed with a short note telling her that he was sorry for everything, and hope that they could still be friends. Yes. Twister nodded to himself as he slipped out the door, unnoticed and totally eclipsed by the impending disaster.

* * *

Oh god, this was hellish. Reggie couldn't stay one more minute here, not with Otto being so weird, Sammy being so quiet (and obviously on Ell's side, could she depend on no one?) and to top it all off, Ell and Twister in the same room. So what if they weren't talking. He had tried, hadn't he? Well it was too late for _her_ to try and salvage their friendship – she was never talking to either of them again, even when her heart healed. Reggie turned towards the door to simply head home and go to bed (she was so deep in thought that she hadn't noticed Twister sneak out a few moments prior) when Sammy suddenly stood up, interrupting the trickle of awkward conversation between Ell and Otto (which should have, if nothing else, made Reggie sit up and pay attention). He opened his mouth, and uttered the fateful words that significantly changed the course of the evening, and very possibly several lives.

"Ell? Will you go out with me?"

* * *

In the moment of total, shocked silence that followed the preposterous proclamation, Ell had time to reflect. She knew Sam had been planning something, (he had talked with Sherry at length earlier in the evening, and the girl was good at three things – volleyball, gossiping, and scheming) but this was the last thing she had expected. If it were up to her she would simply admit that she had been with Otto and end it, painful as that may be. That, or shove Twister and Reggie in a locked closet and not let them out until he told her that he loved her, and thus end this entire fiasco.

She would not have chosen the way Sam had, which seemed to focus itself on angering all the Rockets it could. It worked yes, but it was a very, very dangerous stratagem.

"WHAT?!" Otto roared as he leapt to his feet. "WHAT THE HELL?!"

Even Reggie, shocked as well, had to blink. Um…Otto? This was the angriest she'd seen her brother in _years._ What was _that_?

Ell simply muttered, "I hope you know what you're doing, Sam."

Sam muttered to Ell before turning his attention to Otto, "I do. Got a problem, Otto? Hate her so much you just can't stand seeing anyone _else_ with her?"

Otto's face darkened as he grimaced. "Ell! What the hell is going on?" Reggie's eyes widened as she observed Otto's seemingly unreasonable behavior. Otto continued to glare down at Ell, who had not yet gotten off her stool. "Why does the _Squid_ of all people think you like him?"

Otto had never been so angry before in his life. It wasn't just anger – it was confusion and betrayal as well. Had Ell been cheating on him? Wasn't Sam with Sherry? Why was the Squid so fucking calm? What the hell was going on?

Reggie felt the breath catch in her throat. Her brain hadn't put it all together yet, but she could feel the pieces clicking together, and each step towards completion brought a sickly sense of hope she was afraid to nurse back to life. Why would Otto be mad? He must care…about something…about _someone_…

Ell looked wide-eyed up at Otto. "I don't know! This is all because Twister caught us in the music room! Sam's just being…Sam stop it!"

Sam said nothing, just looked at the three with raised eyebrows not quite obscured by his now fashionably thick frames.

Reggie's brain was still working furiously. This was, in a way, just like the situation with Twister. And unless Ell liked all of them…wait. Had she just said…_Twister caught us in the music room?_ Stifling what just might have been a gurgle of exultation, Reggie half-vaulted, half-fell out of her stool and stumbled out the door. Her awkward exit drew the notice of the three remaining teens. In the moment before Otto started up again, Sam spoke.

"Sorry Otto. Just had to clear that up for her. Now I gotta catch _my_ girlfriend. Bye you two!"

Ell and Otto stared at the door for a moment before turning to each other. Ell sighed in response to Otto's half-maddened, questioning stare.

"I told him earlier today. About us. Well…he guessed it, really."

"Then why did he-"

"Otto, I don't know. I think Reggie heard us in the music room too, but she saw Twister's hat and… jumped to the wrong conclusion."

Otto leaned back against the counter, facing her, attempting to hold his head in his hands. "I don't get it."

He had to be so cute when vulnerable and confused, didn't he. Ell smiled just the slightest bit as she looked up at him. "Neither do I. Otto." She sighed. "Let me tell you something, just in case…well, anything else crazy happens." She took his hand and started playing with it as he looked over at her, lower lip pouting just the smallest bit. "I know that this is only for…well, experience I guess but it's not…I'm not…" Brushing back escaped tendrils out of her face, she attempted to continue. "It's not that way for me anymore. Now that everyone knows…I guess I'm trying to say that I really like y-"

"_Eydis?"_

Otto eyes widened as he saw the girl he had lusted after for months and had only too recently finally won turn to stone before him. Straightening, he lifted his eyes to see the owner of the mysterious voice: a tall, tired looking, middle-aged man who was apparently lost. Opening his mouth to correct him, he snapped it shut a moment later when Ell beat him to it.

"Yeah?"

She still hadn't turned around. Ell couldn't believe it was all falling down around her like this – everything she had worked so hard to establish would be ruined. Why had…why had _he _come?

"_You speak the most beautiful language in the world, and you muddy your voice with English?"_

"English is your native language why don't you speak it?"

Otto looked at the strange man who apparently Ell knew. The strange man speaking incomprehensible words, who according to Ell, should be speaking English. Strange words Ell understood.

"_Islenska is yours."_

Ell sighed. Shooting a look at Otto, she swiveled slowly on her stool.

"_Ja, Pabbi." (Yes, Father.)_

Otto peered at Ell, completely confused. Now she was doing it too? What was going on, here? What the hell were they saying?

"_Why are you here?"_

The man smiled disarmingly, and opened his arms. When next he spoke it was not the indecipherable words, but English in an almost apologetic British accent. "It is not everyday that a man's only child turns 18."

* * *

Reggie ran through the thickening curtain of snowfall, desperate to find Twister. She had been wrong all this time, and had been too proud and weak to verify her fears. Twister didn't like Ell. It hadn't _been_ Twister. She didn't even care it was her brother, at this moment, all she wanted was to find Twister, throw her arms around his neck, and-

There he was. Loitering outside of her house with a small bundle in hand, looking down at his feet and sighing, as if getting up the courage to do something. She ran up the cul-de-sac to their homes, snow crunching underfoot and warning Twister of his oncoming visitor. She continued running, even when he looked up and noticed her, face reflecting first his surprise, and then apprehension. She kept running until she was close enough to count the freckles spilling across his nose and cheeks (18, but she knew that from previous experience). Then, she tackled him, causing him to fall backwards into the snow.

"Reggie!" Her name and a brief flash of thought directed towards the wellbeing of her present were all Twister had time for. Then Reggie's lips were on his and all thinking ceased. The spontaneous and utterly unexpected kiss was sudden, passionate, and overall perfect, and while Twister did not understand what exactly was going on, he responded with the best of his ability. If this had been his first kiss, he would have been in over his head, but he had spent the last 5 months dreaming of that, which he had shared with Reggie during a drunken evening of Spin the Bottle back at YAF. They had promised to forget, but he couldn't. Not when he had been in love with her since he was 14. And apparently, neither had she. Yet even so, he still held himself back. He didn't know what was going on, and was afraid it was some sort of mistake until Reggie opened her mouth to ply his willing lips further. He felt the warm push of her tongue against his upper lip and then confused or not, Twister was committed. His long arms wrapped around the small of her back and held her tightly as the kissing escalated. It had been so long. They had wanted each other, and it had been a long, hard 5 months. Hell, it had been a long, hard few _years._ He groaned against her mouth as she moved a leg in between his, effectively setting his lower body aflame. Suddenly she pulled back.

"Twist?" For a moment they stared at each other, mouths parted. Reggie's eyes were wide and somewhat wild, taking in his countenance with a nervous energy. Twister's eyes were hooded and soft, warmed by their contact.

"Yeah Reg?"

Oh sensibility be damned she wasn't going to spend another day not in his arms. "I love you."

He smiled, and it was beyond the sexiest thing she had ever seen, it was the most beautiful. "I love you too."

She could do nothing but smile helplessly back at him, wondering when he had made the switch from goofy kid to painfully handsome young man. Maybe it had been back at YAF, when he had kissed her with such sweet sincerity; a marked contrast from how the other boys at YAF had attempted to kiss her. Maybe from the moment he had saved her during that stupid game from their lecherous intentions was when she had begun to see him as a man.

"But maybe we should get out of the snow. I mean, I'm kinda wet." To emphasize his point Twister shivered, although pulling Reggie closer as he did was definitely a bonus. Laughing, Reggie got up and helped him to his feet. The small bundle was still in his hand, but she was more concerned with getting him inside, warm and…well she wasn't going to finish that thought but it was definitely an option. Maybe.

Twister honestly meant to give her the present as soon as he got her inside (in his defense, he thought no further than that. He figured he would go home as soon as the gift was finally given) but the look she gave him after they divested themselves of their coats and shoes made him realize there was another possibility. While not the brightest, he _was _male. It was the realization that they were alone in the house for potentially hours that made him bold, coupled with the knowledge that she actually reciprocated his emotions. He had never dreamed he'd be so lucky. He had never believed it would end like this.

So to pull her close to him and raise her face for another kiss was not only easy, it was instinctive. If the way she responded was any indication, Reggie didn't care they were still in the foyer. At least until she tripped over one of Twister's shoes, and while steadying herself dropped Twister's jacket. Whump. The noise brought Twister back to himself, and stooping down, he retrieved the jacket. Glancing at her to make sure she couldn't see, he furtively checked the small bundle, and sighing in relief, put it into her hands. Reggie looked questioningly at him and then down at her gift.

"Merry Christmas, Reggie."

For a moment, Reggie froze in panic. She hadn't gotten him a gift…she had been so mad at him she had planned to avoid him for the rest of their lives and he had gotten her a gift? Oh, dammit. She looked at him in consternation but he kissed her forehead and mumbled, "I know. You were mad. You loving me back is better than actually buying me something, ok? Just open it."

While assuaging her guilt, his words brought back to mind why she was mad. For a moment fearing that all this was some terrible, terrible trick she whispered, "You…you saw them? In the music room?"

Her fears were groundless. "Ell and Otto? Yeah…I opened the door and everything although they didn't uh…didn't notice." Realization struck Twister. "Is _that_ why you were mad? Why wouldn't you talk to me then?"

"No…no I was confused…I was wrong. I didn't know it was Otto. I thought…well I saw your hat and I thought it was you." She ducked her head, embarrassed even as she was now assured of his feelings.

Twister was nonplussed for a moment, but reddened as the implication sank in. "I didn't even think of that…Lars told me about how they "sexile" people in college and I didn't want anyone else finding them, and I figured my hat would work because Otto is my best bro and all." He paused, thinking. "And Ell was helping me out with you, so I knew it would be ok." He grimaced. "I didn't realize it would make it look like _I_ was in there…"

Reggie suddenly felt a sharp stab of guilt for having yelled at Ell. When Twister was gone, she was going to call her and apologize about everything. But right now…She looked down at Twister's gift in her hands. It was small, wrapped in bright tissue paper (_Twister wrapped like a five-year-old_, she thought wryly,) and one end had a hard, flat point which puzzled Reggie's questing fingers.

"Come on, open it." Reggie needed no further urging. She ripped apart the taped tissue, as nicely as she could in her excitement. She saw the smooth leather cord first, and assumed it was a necklace of some sort, yet when she saw what had confused her fingers, she froze, heart in her mouth.

It was a silver key, substantial enough to weigh satisfyingly in her hand, yet not too large to be bulky underneath a shirt. In execution it was simple yet lovely, but the reason it so stunned Reggie was because she knew exactly what the key was for. It was the key to Twister's film cabinet.

The cabinet had been a gift from his grandfather, who had died several years back. It was rich auburn in color, much like the color of Otto's hair, actually. Faded designs of small half-children, half-goats frolicking (what they later learned were named satyrs), playing pipes and generally having a good time, decorated the ancient cabinet. Strange as it was, Twister had instantly fallen in love with it, and decided only the things he valued most were to be stored in it. While there had been several weeks of trial and error, it soon became what it was today – the holding place of all he had recorded. It was Twister's sacred place, and no one had ever been trusted to look inside it. Not his parents, not Otto. Yet here he was, giving her a duplicate of the key? For that was what it was, surely. Oh, Twister…

"It's to the film cabinet. I figured…whether you liked me back or not, I wanted you to be a part of my filmographer life too. And…well everything else. I mean, it's cool when we're all being active and running around and stuff but I don't just want you like that. Like when we were kids. I want you there all the time, doing all sorts of stuff and…um…" Twister's hard-won (to tell the truth he had agonized for hours over it) speech was cut off by the look on Reggie's face. It stilled the very blood in his veins.

"Thank you." She was unable to do any more than whisper. For a moment, she too was frozen by the emotional power resonating between them. Then, looking up with the brazen, confident, rocket-girl grin he had fallen in love with, she pulled his head down to hers.

"I want to be with you too, Twist. In all capacities."

Twister's smile was cut off by the interruption of Reggie's lips, for the final time that night. Passion rocking them like the ocean waves, they clung to each other, glorying in the taste and texture of the one they loved. Eventually, the foyer could no longer contain their excitement, and stumbling up the stairs they reached the top, where Reggie's back found the wall and Twister delighted in his height, strength, and newfound proximity to Reggie's subtle curves. Yet even the stairwell soon proved inadequate. The door to Reggie's room beckoned, and soon enough, the two were on the more intimate side of it, lost to the world in each other.

* * *

Otto grimaced at snowflakes. Sure, they were pretty now but when they landed they would merely be indistinguishable flakes in an overwhelming white expanse of snow, and soon enough they'd be nothing but slush. And that summed up his attitude about pretty much everything at the moment. Slush. Everything was fucking slush.

He had left after the strange man revealed Ell was his daughter. His 18 year-old daughter. Jesus no wonder he had felt so uncomfortable with her at the beginning, she was older than Reggie! No wonder she had so much experience! When he had made the deal with her, he wasn't really sure how much experience she had. He had assumed more than him, but that was all he had bargained for. But an 18 year-old woman? And today was her birthday! Ell. Whose name wasn't even Ell, apparently, but Eydis. Christ. Was everything she had told him a lie?

She had been about to tell him that she liked him. But how could he believe her when she wouldn't even tell him her name, for chrissakes! Memories of the past month bombarded him. Watching her play the cello, making out in the music room, sneaking glances and secret smiles in English, chasing and wrestling with her on the beach at night when he could sneak out. Otto shook his head violently. No. None of that meant anything, apparently. She couldn't even tell him her _name._

* * *

"So…why were you near the music hall anyway?"

Twister hummed contentedly as Reggie traced trails on his chest with her fingertips. He didn't realize how good it felt for a girl you loved to fit into your side like this. No_ wonder_ parents slept together. Well, that and all the kissing and touching prior.

"Twist?"

"Oh, sorry. Well…it's really dumb, actually. I was hiding from someone."

"Hiding?" Reggie propped herself up on an elbow so she could study his face. "Hiding from who?"

Twister looked unhappily up at Reggie. "Emma."

"What? What happened?"

"Well…so you know how Otto doesn't like her, right?"

Reggie shot Twister the Twister-I'm-Not-As-Dumb-As-You-Are look.

"Right, right. Yeah. You know. Well, she decided that maybe I would. Even though I don't. At all. I really like-"

Reggie laughed softly and stopped his mouth with her fingers. "I know, Twist. So she was chasing you?"

"Yeah. I thought I could hide down there. But uh. Yeah."

Reggie chuckled at the boy beneath her, and then settled down to curve against him. She stretched like a cat, yawned, and was about to drift off to sleep when a rumble from above thoroughly woke her.

"You know I'm a big idiot most of the time, right?"

Reggie sighed happily as she threaded her leg on top of his. "Yep."

"And you don't care?"

Reggie kissed his collarbone. "Nope. I love you anyways."

She could feel Twister's tension deflate. "Thank god."

Reggie smirked. "_Even_ if your name is really Maurice." She stifled a shriek as she suddenly found herself on her back, a dangerously sexy Twister looming over her. "Well, _Regina_," Reggie's protest was effectively silenced by his throaty interjection, "two can play that game."

"Mhhhm." Pupils dilated, Reggie reached for Twister, and for quite a long time afterwards, no coherent words were spoken.

* * *

OHHHHH SHE DID IT! She finally put them together, ahhh yes. She. Did. Haha now as I said last chapter, that was my goal. Reggie and Twister. Together, in a bed. To be totally honest it probably didn't need that much build up, and I probably could have been a hell of a lot more explicit (I certainly wanted to be jeez) but I honestly ran out of room, and for whatever reason my flow simply did not direct me to said desirable state. I'm almost at 4,000 words on this chapter alone. Sooo here it is. You really want some mad Twister/Reggie lovin', I will oblige. Keep in mind Ell and Otto might never have a *satisfactory reconciliation (doesn't mean it _can't_ happen…) but at least Twist and Regg will get their rocks off. Or whatever that stupid phrase is. My gift to you. But! Here are the next five chapters:

6) Otto

7) Raymundo (First adult in the countdown. Very nice.)

8) It started off as Twister but it changed to Reggie halfway. Yes I work in mysterious ways that I myself do not even comprehend. But there you have it.

9) Sam (First for him too! Woot)

10) Ell/Eydis.

*Bows. I hope you have enjoyed my offerings on the altar of fanfic! If you are super pissed I am ending this rather abruptly, please cease thy anger. Far be it from me to hint suggestively, but there might be something new in the mix, albeit (how many times have I used that word in this piece? Too many is the answer) not Rocket Power. GASP SHHHHHHH do not TELL anyone I am in trouble enough AS IT IS for not writing more on my Fairy Tail nonsense. They are going to hunt me down soon.

Until next time!

Adieu (for now),

I


	12. Ch 11: Aftermath and American Filler

**Stillllll don't own Rocket Power. Sorry for the long wait!**

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**Chapter 11: Aftermath (Fallout), Italicized Conversations, and Advanced Courses in Idiocy.**

**(**_**I mean, I'm pretty sure romantic guys do it…or was that creepers? Enhh fuck it, here goes-)**_

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The next day, Twister woke up surprisingly early, wondering at the clash and clatter of pots and pans coming from downstairs. Stretching on the bed, he wondered at his Mami and Papi – what were they doing up this early? Assuming it was early…usually he could tell roughly what time it was by the amount of light against his closed eyelids, but today it all felt a little different. He sighed. Although he wanted to go back to bed, little uncomfortable details made opening his eyes (while undesirable) a necessity. For one thing, the bed felt strange. Not only did the blanket feel lighter than normal, his feet were hanging off the edge. He opened his eyes, hoping sleep would come back soon after he fixed the source of discomfort.

The desire was firmly knocked out of his head when he realized the source of another substantial difference – Reggie Rocket was in bed with him. He inhaled sharply as the memories of last night flooded his mind. She had-he had…they were in _love…_ He smiled softly as he settled onto an elbow, sudden panic gone. They hadn't done anything to be ashamed of, just some kissing, touching and holding, and so he didn't feel too embarrassed about watching her sleep. His smile remained as his eyes traced her face. Her sleeping face was so different than her awake face – she looked so sweet with her eyelashes dusting her cheekbones, and her tousled curls tangling on her pillow.

"Switch…_mumble _360…"

Twister's smile grew helplessly as he held in a giggle. That was his rocket girl…dreaming about action stunts. He traced a line on her face with the backs of his fingers wondering if he should wake her or not. She was so cute that he wanted to kiss her again, and make sure that last night hadn't been some amazing dream. A sudden thought occurred to him. Was it romantic to wake a girl up with a kiss? He was leaning in to do the deed when the clasher and clatterer of pans made him return abruptly to panic mode.

"Reggie! Otto! Breakfast!" This was accompanied by a slow yet steady _thump, thump_ of footsteps on the stairs, reminding Twister that today was the day after Christmas, he was in Reggie's bed, _and Reggie's father was making his way up the stairs._

Calling on all his considerable athleticism, Twister vaulted over Reggie and onto the floor, and as quietly as he could rolled under it, thanking all the gods he knew of that Reggie was a neat and tidy girl and only kept a few boxes under the bed. Yet even so, he couldn't quite fit under it – his knees poked out a little. He pulled the blanket over the side of the bed, and hoped it was enough.

_Knock knock_. "Reggie? Are you up? I've made pancakes."

It would have to do. Twister heard Reggie roll around and mumble something incoherently. The rapid beat of his heart was like a drum and it was the perfect backdrop for the mantra he was chanting in his head: _Please don't come in please don't come in please…_

His prayer was denied. Raymundo stuck his head in the door to rouse his daughter. "Princess? Wake up, it's time for breakfast."

Reggie shot up on the bed, suddenly awake. Her eyes were wide and her head swung around desperately, as if she were looking for something. "Um, um, Dad? Um, good morning. Um." She relaxed a little, yet now looked confused. Her shoulders sagged, and Raymundo's brows furrowed in concern.

"Honey? Are you ok? You look upset."

Twister held his breath under the bed, praying that Raymundo wouldn't take another step into the room. He was relieved when Reggie suddenly laughed, even though to his ears it sounded a little forced.

"No, no, I'm fine. I'm sorry Raymundo, I was just dreaming."

"Ahh, I see Princess. Well, I'm going to go rouse your brother. Breakfast is on the table."

"Thanks Dad!"

Twister waited a few seconds before sticking his head out from underneath the bed. "Good morning Reggie."

"Meorgh!" Reggie squeaked and almost fell off the bed. "Twister! You-it-you're…" She sighed, collecting herself. She smiled. "You _are_ here."

Twister smiled hugely in reply. Extricated from his tricky situation, he was free to admire his beloved rocket, although he was slightly disappointed to miss out on the opportunity of waking her up with a kiss. Yet perhaps it still wasn't too late. He jumped up, quietly, and pushed her back down on the bed, and whispered for her to close her eyes. She furrowed her face in befuddlement, but she did as he asked.

He kissed her sweetly, and could feel her lips relax, then curve into a small smile. She laughed breathily when he pulled away.

"_Buenos dias,_ Reggie." Twister whispered. Reggie was about to respond when banging from Otto's room alerted them to a certain truth – Twister was in the Rocket house, and for once had no sanctioned call to be so. Wide eyed, Twister turned to his surreptitious lady, and she took charge. Twister had practically grown up in their home, it would be no trouble for him to sneak out. The one sticking point were his shoes. They had been left downstairs in the foyer, and if Raymundo or Otto noticed them…disaster. Utter disaster.

* * *

For Twister, the worst part of sneaking out of the Rocket house had not been the actual act of leaving, but waiting in the same room, eyes averted, as Reggie changed into new clothes. Going downstairs in the clothes she had worn yesterday would have prompted certain unanswerable questions, yet _not _looking when the one woman you desired above all else – or simply desired at all – was half naked and in the same room as you was torture. Thankfully, everything else went smoothly. He slunk down the stairs moments after Reggie, slipped on his shoes, and waited for Reggie to create a minor ruckus with the pancake plate to open the door and slip out. He ran home unimpeded, hoping that his parents weren't awake yet. In a stroke of what he believed to be brilliance, he opened his mailbox, planning to tell his parents that he had gotten up early to get the mail for them.

His face fell as he realized this was Christmas, and there was no mail on holidays. Well, there was only so much he could do. He shuffled up the sidewalk slowly, hoping that his parents had imbibed a little too well the night before, and that Lars had…Lars had…

Enhhh. Right now, Twister couldn't bring himself to care. He hoped they'd be forgiving. It _was_ Christmas after all…

* * *

The first thing Reggie did when all the Christmas rituals had been observed – food demolished, presents unwrapped, Raymundo and Tito thanked – was call Ell. Twister had mentioned last night how Ell had been counseling him through the confession process, and had helped him with the gift, and Reggie, now that she was officially blissed out, felt the guilt keenly. She was even prepared not to care about how Ell and Otto had been seeing each other secretly. Magnanimous. Word of the day.

Yet Ell was not picking up. She called back a second and third time, but every time it went straight to voicemail. As this was 3 in the afternoon, Reggie knew the girl was not sleeping. Something was going on here. So she did the unthinkable – swallowed her embarrassment and asked Otto.

"Hey rocket boy? Uh, you know what Ell's doing today?" Reggie had left before disaster struck, and had been too happy to realize that a calm, quiet Otto was not a happy Otto.

Otto fixed his sister with a borderline dangerous glare, and didn't respond.

Reggie felt the first stirrings of unease. "Uh…Otto? Did something happen?"

The dam burst. Otto was unaccompanied to keeping his joys and grievances bottled up, and even this miniscule questioning was enough to make him spill. "_Yeah._ After you left, _her dad_ came, and oh, did you know her name isn't Ell? It's _Eydis. _And guess how old she is? _18._ And oh, yeah. _She speaks another fuckin' language." _

Reggie instinctively looked around for Raymundo, who would have a conniption, Christmas or not, if he heard _Otto's_ language. Then Otto's words hit her. "Wait, what? She's…she's 18? What are you talking about?"

"It was her _birthday_ yesterday," Otto continued, voice dripping with venom. "And so her dad came to see her, and spoke in this weird ass language, and she kept telling him to speak in English but _she_ finally switched and when she did he went back to English. And that's the end. Of _everything."_

Reggie felt completely lost. Torn between defending her friend and losing herself in betrayal as her brother did, Reggie remembered that Ell had helped Twister, and that settled it. "Well, wait. Why does _that_ matter? I mean, Twister speaks another language, and that's no big."

"Yeah well Twister doesn't lie about it."

"Uh yeah he did."

"_What._"

"Remember? When we were little and he told us he couldn't play with us because he found us frightening, and didn't speak English. In perfect English."

Otto rolled his eyes. "That's different. That's Twister."

"Well maybe she had a reason for not telling us. I mean, just having turned 18 isn't too bad…" A vague memory from the first day of school came to mind, and it finally made sense. "Otto! She's never gone to high school before, that's why she's a year behind."

"…What?"

"Yeah on the first day she was kind of overwhelmed, and she said something about never having done something like this before. But then Twister interrupted and I never got to ask what that meant. Look, her dad's a scientist or something, and he probably homeschooled her or something. You know. So that's not bad…She's just about my age."

Otto shook his head. "No Reggie, it's bad. _She lied about all of it._ I mean, if she lies about her _name,_ what _else_ was she lying about?"

Reggie suddenly realized that she wasn't going to argue Otto out of his ire. Otto's heart was damn close to broken, and Reggie had no words to fix that. Ell had hurt him very deeply, and although she felt bad for her friend, Reggie had to stand by her best bro right now. Wordlessly, she stepped forward to hug her brother, and for once, Otto let her.

It was Christmas, after all.

* * *

The rest of Christmas break passed as if within the eye of the storm – a period of relative calm and low passions, with tension pressing in on all sides, always reminding them of what was to come. Ell wasn't there. Sam had received an email the day after Christmas explaining that her father had taken her back…home for about a month. She was sorry. Tell everyone. Tell Otto. So sorry.

Otto had pretended not to care, and then proceeded to throw himself recklessly into every sort of danger he could imagine – from stunts, to arguing with Raymundo, to alcohol. Twister was with him nearly 24/7 now, to talk him down from the truly stupid shit, and to keep him from that beer can (one too many). According to him, Otto never talked about her, even when seriously drunk, and he didn't know whether it was a good thing or a bad thing.

Twister had known about one secret, at least. Otto was at the dentists, and so Twister and Reggie capitalized on his absence for some stolen alone time. After the breathless kissing led to satisfied humming, they had found time for intelligible speech and Twister admitted for the second time (the first had been to Otto during an early drinking session, and that had almost ended in disaster). He had known she spoke Icelandic because of YAF. He had been napping in their room (Reggie's bed, he admitted shyly, and only because he was hiding from the fan girls) when Ell had gotten home. She was speaking loudly, incomprehensibly, and it had woken Twister up. The call hadn't been long, and he had come out when she finished, and she had nearly panicked – she had dropped the phone and all her music.

She had begged him to keep it a secret – she _hated_ being considered a foreigner, mostly because she hated Iceland. She hated her past. She hated to think about it, to speak that language, hated her father, hate hate hate. He could kind of understand. Sometimes, it was hard being caught between two languages and cultures; like he would speak one in the home, and think in the other, yet when they went back to Mexico he would adapt and try to start _thinking_ in Spanish and it was all hard.

Reggie tried not to giggle at this. She nodded seriously and agreed that thinking could be quite difficult sometimes. Her sarcasm was not lost the boy, however, and he proceeded to prove to her that thought processi _could_ be difficult, generally when his tongue was in the immediate vicinity of her neck. They did not waste more time with talk – their time alone was depressingly rare, due to the amount of attention they all were paying Otto. Yet it was a tradeoff. The longer she was away, the less reckless he became, and he also became more observant. Just like before, he balked at the idea of Reggie and Twister being close friends unto themselves, instead of two of the four points of Team Rocket. By not announcing to the whole world that they were together, (they settled on just telling The Squid, who basically knew anyways) they tried to preserve their unequal peace. They figured that as long as they didn't tell anyone, and didn't act too lovey together, or get caught, it would all be ok. They worked hard at not thinking about how Otto would react when he eventually found out; how betrayed he would feel, how angry and hurt he would be. They were in love, and thought their secret would keep forever.

Two more weeks went by, and then school played a large role in keeping tensions down to a minimum. Otto fell back in with many of the shoobs and fangirls. He told himself he would fool around with whatever girl he wanted, yet he couldn't select one in particular. Whenever someone began flirting with him, all he could see was _her, _and the attraction died in an instant. Otto was not, for all his egoistic confidence, a man to play around. His emotions were strong and straightforward, and he couldn't transpose his feelings for Ell onto anyone else, no matter how much he wanted to. Eventually he realized this, or realized that liking anyone else simply would not work, and he backed down. He channeled all his energy into his athletics, to the relief of his family and friends, and by the time she returned, he was still taking solace in his stunts.

* * *

Sam figured all his friends had taken advanced courses in idiocy over the summer. How else was he to explain their communal stupidity? Ok, so maybe Twister and Reggie were _finally_ together. Good for them. It had still taken them months, if not years too long to get to that point. And the week leading up to their confessions had been hellish for everyone. Semester grade: C+. He supposed it could have been worse, but honestly, Reggie had really brought the grade up (A being the highest level of idiocy) by her lack of communication. They were fortunate Twister was always dumb, and that he had actually been operating on an elevated level of intelligence (Sam thought it pure luck, but didn't begrudge him his eventual success) that resulted in him (finally) getting the girl.

And don't even get him started on Otto's behavior. He understood he was probably pretty hurt, but what did he expect? Otto had only been playing at a relationship himself - as far as he could tell from bits of Ell's confession – and he expected total honesty from her? Ridiculous. Semester grade: B, although part of that was for simply keeping their relationship a secret for a whole damned month anyways. Sam didn't like to admit it, but he was miffed he hadn't noticed. Yep. Definitely a B.

Ell now, he was disappointed in her. Leaving? For a month? With barely a word to explain? This was not like her. He realized she probably didn't have much of a choice. According to Otto, her father had been here, and he had taken her home. Most likely unwillingly. Still, the secrets she kept were sort of a big deal, and she must have known they were going to come out eventually. He had to give her an A. Not because she deserved it, per se, but because of the destruction that rode along her wake. Out of all his friends, however, he felt for her the most. She hated drama, and here it was in abundance.

Damn. If it was like this now, what would it be like when she got back?

* * *

**Look. I know. I **_**knoowwwwww**_** you all want the mad ReggiexTwister sexin'. Believe me, I want it too. But it simply is not going to be as good (I almost said it "simply was not gonna' come" and then I realized how foolish that would be) if I just go boom ninja!sex done. Also, Ell is doing some mad convincing up in my brain and if she works her cards right, there may even be some mad Otto sexin' as well. I had basically written her out of the story and then I realized that was dumb, as I don't like OC's and I certainly wasn't going to write another one, and I felt bad for Otto. So angsty. Needs some lovin'. **

**So! Read and review, and I'll see what I can do about getting another chapter of this up within a non-ridiculous amount of time. Hint for next chapter – dislikeable (antagonist? Le gasp) fiancé. :O**

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**To alllll who reviewed: (go you, and thank you)**

**Linables: Yes I want the sexy times too. Hopefully the fire will continue. With a smidgen of ice. And yes yes I will read your story/be inspired by it! I love Reggie Twister stories, and I'm glad we're all writing about them (yaaaaay) :D**

**PJ101: Haha yeah I feel bad for Sam too, but he's got his woman and believe me, he's doing just fine *winks***

**Panic x panda and Anonymous Coward: Thank you! *Bows***

**Cwalsh15: Wow, amazing review :D First of all, the madtown train reference made me snort water out my nose, and I'm really, really glad you like all the characters (especially Ell, who **_**I**_** thought was funny in a snarcastic sort of way, but was unsure about everyone else). I also liked the idea of happily ever now, instead of happily ever after. Very realistic and smart, and I hope I don't disappoint.**

**TheyCallMeJazzy: Damn, another sweet review, thanks :D Hahah way to start out stroking the ego :P Yeah, it's interesting that you and cwalsh15 have the same view of poor Otto, although…yeah. I know what you guys are talking about, I suppose. But thank you so much for the massively flattering review, and don't worry, they're going to come out with their secret lurve, but it may take a while still. But yes. Raymundo will be appropriately shocked, although he mayyyyy have an inkling…?**

**Shiningheart of ThunderClan: yaaaay thank you for the dance!**

**Kimba616: Yeah, Reggie was pretty much too happy for any smacking, but she feels bad, nonetheless. And Avatar. Oh god. Here goes… (new story cough cough cough by ME)**

**Daisy617: Damn, I am super lucky with all these great reviewers. Yeah, Reggie was definitely playing it safe. Buuuuuuut she won in the end so all is good. But yeah, I finally took your hint (sorry ****) And woot for psychic brothers!**

**Annieluwho and hmmm: Thanks for the reviews guys!**

**See? I write little notes to reviewers. Occasionally. So get to it, guys **


	13. Ch 12: Antagonists and Pouncing

**I don't own Rocket Power, and I'm sure we're all very surprised.

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**Chapter 12: Antagonist!Henrik, Pouncing, and Pseudo-Sexy Times (Finally!)**

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"**I **_**knew**_** it. I knew there was something going on. They're staring at each other like Pygmalion and Galatea, and ye gods, he looks like he's about to ravish her. **

…**Must break mood!"**

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On January 23, Ell Bryndis took her first few steps on American soil, after nearly a month's hiatus. In her left hand she carried her suitcase, while Ditrik was strapped to her back. So far, all was as normal, yet when one looked to her right matters began to be different – next to her stood Henrik Godmundson, her childhood friend and self-acclaimed fiancé. She did not acknowledge him, she did not even look in his direction. She certainly was not going to marry him. She toyed with the idea of stranding him in the airport, but knew there was too much at stake to go through with it. If her father hadn't threatened to evict her from her apartment if Henrik didn't stay with her (although she was 18 _now_ the apartment lease wasn't under her name, and forgery was a crime no matter how you looked at it) she wouldn't be putting up with all this. At least he was a year older, and wouldn't be attending high school. There, at least, she would be safe. And although she may no longer have friends (she thought Reggie might still be angry, although she figured Sam and Twister wouldn't be too mad…Otto was…impossible to think about at the moment) she would be _away_ from Henrik, who had become, in her absence, a serious pain in the ass. For one thing, he kept trying to assert his masculinity, which was ridiculous as she had always been – and arguably still was – far stronger than him. Yet that was nowhere near as bothersome as his taking their "engagement" seriously. What had been a semi-serious joke between her family and his was now being taken seriously, absolutely without her consent. Of course it would never go through without her wanting it to, but the fact that he considered matrimony as an acceptable outcome was vaguely frightening. What happened to the boy who had laughed and played with her? Who had colored pictures for hours on end? Who was afraid of everything that _breathed?_

"_Eydis, where-"_

Ell tilted her head away from him, in studied avoidance of the question. The Christmas misadventure had only solidified her avoidance of the language – only bad things happened when she spoke it. Experience had proven.

"_Eydis-"_

"For god's sake speak English, Henrik. Otherwise I won't fucking speak to you."

He complied. His English was good, although heavily accented. "What is wrong with you, Eydis?"

"Me? You're the one who _followed _me here. And don't call me that. I'm Ell."

"I'm going to call you by your name."

"Then I have very little to say to you."

Henrik's glacial blue eyes furrowed in displeasure. She had been like this since she had returned – angry and uncommunicative. She was his friend, was she not? He also didn't understand why she was only now contesting their engagement. It had been long understood that they would someday be married, yet now she was balking? Maybe she had met someone…or maybe her depression had spiraled since the accident…

He realized she had hailed a cab while he was lost in his thoughts, and his protective urges berated him. Here he was, not five minutes into a new country, and she was taking the lead. Well, this would not do. He was a new Henrik, no longer the weak, crying boy she obviously remembered, and he would prove to her that he was a man. Soon enough she would see that she was a woman, and it was only natural to fall under his protection…Yet for now, in this situation, he probably should defer to her. He could not deny that her language skills were far better than his, and after all, she knew where they were going. She hoisted her bag in herself, and settled Ditrik in between them, and Henrik let her have that small victory. After all, all he had to do was call her father, and her independent arrangement would be at an end. He held the power here, and she would recognize that soon enough.

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Ell supposed there was one upside to Henrik being here. Although he was often insufferable and far too concerned with physical contact and intimate speeches, his presence spurred her on to school whereas without him, she would have been far harder pressed to go back. So, although she was jetlagged as hell, she went to school the very next day after returning to America. She hoped that she would be too damn tired to deal with the emotional upheaval of seeing…everyone again. At the very least it would mean 7 hours without Henrik.

She had made sure she would be early so she could apologize in person for her extended absence (not trusting her father's email to have done the job), but in doing so had ensured the maximum amount of torture time. She still sat next to Otto in first period in the back corner of the class – cut off from just about everyone else _but_ Otto. She did not look forward to seeing him again (her mangled confession only made things 500 times worse) but she knew nothing would be solved by running away from him. Anyways, she had been through much worse. Telling herself that this would not be the hardest moment of her life, that there was always worse to come (a depressing but curiously uplifting thought) Ell walked through the door almost 12 minutes early, hoping to find Mr. Murdoch alone. She was disappointed.

She stared across the infinite space at Otto Rocket, congruently wondering at the absurdity of his goggles (_she had forgotten oh how she had forgotten the reality of him, the presence and power of him)_ and at his being there 12 minutes early. In the initial moment of recognition, before even panic could set in, they merely _watched_ each other, and for an insane, glorious moment, Ell felt that she could step into his arms, and for the space of that heartbeat, all would be as before. Yet the illusion shattered at their feet the moment Mr. Murdoch, sitting at his desk in plain view of all whose hearts are not in their eyes, spoke.

"Ahh, Miss Bryndis. So good to have you back. I assume your time in Iceland was well spent?"

Ell turned to him blindly. She felt the moment break between Otto and herself, and she grasped for words all the while seeing Otto grimacing out of the corner of her eye. "Ahh, as- as well it could be. I'm sorry for missing so much." She dared not look at Otto now, yet neither could she move closer to Mr. Murdoch. He hadn't moved either. What did that mean? He had to be beyond angry…why wasn't he brushing past her, and ignoring her?

"Not at all. Your father's email explained everything. Besides, your grade is already quite good."

"Thank you." Maybe he wanted to yell at her? Hit her? Ell imagined he could hurt her quite badly, but at the moment she wasn't too adverse to the notion. After all, communication of any sort was more than she had hoped for…she remembered his face when he had left her and her father alone in The Shack. She knew then that it was over.

She vaguely heard the door open behind her, but was too busy attempting to dredge up something – anything – to say to Otto to pay it any attention. That didn't happen until she was rudely shoved out of the way by Emma, who thrust herself at Otto. Ell lowered her eyes before physical contact was made; she had no wish to see Otto take up with a new woman. She had half expected it. After all, wasn't the deal that he was to use her for experience? She turned and made her way to the seat, and Otto's response was lost in the deluge of students coming in through the door.

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She spent the majority of the class looking out the window. She did not seem to notice Otto carefully not looking at her, a deduction slightly more difficult by the goggles that partially blocked his peripheral vision. He didn't know how he felt about _her_ studied ignorance. He had spent the last month hating her as much as he had ever hated anyone, and intermittently thought he could go on hating her as well as ever. Yet that first moment had shaken his resolve, and his subsequent disgust with Emma's whorishness had only shown him how clearly superior Ell was. He hadn't forgotten what she looked like, nor any of her expressions, but he had forgotten just how much he liked them. Craved them. Craved _her. _

He hadn't expected their first meeting to be like that. He hadn't expected both of them to freeze, and hadn't expected the mental panic. When she had walked in the door, frowning and clearly reluctant, his mind had froze. It was her. She was back. She was right there, looking back at him, and he could do _anything_. He could walk over to her and kiss her, hug her, hit her, speak to her, ignore her, or simply stare at her. Anything. Of course, that was a bit idealistic. Perhaps it was better to say he could do anything save anything that required an even heartbeat – for his had thumped irregularly while they stared desperately at each other. Who was he kidding, he was helpless in her gaze – her return brought back all his stifled emotions, and the pure havoc she wreaked on his nervous system was alarming. Even now, with her blatantly ignoring him, the urge to reach out and stroke her arm, leg, or anything he could reach was unnerving. His arm moved towards her once, yet he was able to catch it before his intent became obvious. Hate her. Hate her for lying to him, for keeping the truth of her from him. She was older, and different, and had the nerve to tell him that she liked him, but couldn't even tell him her _name. _

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Ell had only taken a few hesitant steps through the cafeteria doors before she was yanked unceremoniously to the customary table. Twister and Sam-of all things – were already there, looking up expectantly at her. Sam managed a small wave, and Twister merely grinned. He'd already seen her in gym. Reggie, the elbow-tugger, sat down and pointed to the seat beside her.

"Sit."

Ell looked down at her, nervous. She couldn't tell if Reggie was pissed or not. Then Reggie looked up at her, and gave her a wicked grin.

"C'mon girl. How the hell are we gonna' give you all the gossip you missed if you don't sit down?"

Ell's grateful grin was instant. She scooted next to her friend, and sighed, looking uncustomarily repentant. "I'm sorry, Reggie. And Sam. And Twister. I should have just explained a little, and then all that drama wouldn't have gone down. Are you really mad?"

Reggie looked over at her. "I was for a bit. But then I thought about it, and realized that your secrets are your own business. I mean I know," she looked a bit guilty, but Ell shook her head, not affronted, "But only because you told Otto. Er well…because he found out," Reggie ended lamely. She hadn't thought about how to approach the Otto issue, and had hoped to do that in private.

Ell nodded. "Yeah, I'm sorry about that too. My…father can be pretty dramatic. His parents were actors or something." She smiled wryly. "But he's gone, and that's that. So…there's something I want to do before we get to the gossip, ok?" She made eye contact with the three people at her table before continuing. "Ok. So I'm pretty sure you all know, but I figured I should just tell you everything so I feel better about it: I'm foreign. Icelandic. I don't like talking about it for personal reasons. Twister kinda' knew about it, so yeah. It's out there now. Secondly, I'm 18. I missed a year of school when I was a kid, and that's why I'm only a junior." Ell took a deep breath before she continued. "Lastly, my name isn't exactly Ell. It's Eydis. I know there's not a lot of connection between the two, but I figured since no one else does names the way Iceland does, I could basically be called whatever I wanted. There's the stuff you knew about. Er…well. Except the Otto thing." She snuck a glance over at Reggie, who was serenely gnawing on a slice of pizza. "And I uh, was seeing Otto before Christmas. But I think you all probably know about that."

Everyone nodded and looked vaguely awkward. They all looked nowhere near the vicinity of Reggie.

"I'm sorry I didn't say anything…mostly to you, Reggie. I mean, we were dumb to keep the whole thing a secret. But basically yeah. We saw each other for a while. It started right after that party that the cops crashed, actually. And it's over. I mean, we can't even look at each other now. He thinks I betrayed him, I guess. Because I didn't tell him all of that." She very carefully met no one's eye. Eventually she looked up at Sam, because she figured he was the safest. Yep, he was pretty neutral. Slightly sympathetic. Good. Now she could handle Twister…who was looking at Reggie. Oh god. That couldn't be good. She slowly looked sideways.

Before she could make eye contact, she was ninja hugged by the one who had least cause to sympathize with her. Reggie had carelessly thrown her arms around her, and squeezed.

"Re-Reggie? I-shouldn't you be made at me?"

"Hmph. Probably. But you looked so miserable, I just can't." Reggie released her hold and leaned back. "You guys are absolutely ridiculous. You have no idea how mopey he was while you were gone. Just explain all that to him and make up, before he drives the rest of us insane."

Ell stared at her, her mouth gaping. "What?"

Sam took over. "Yeah, he was pretty torn up. I mean, he was three times as reckless as usual, and was absolutely taciturn. You couldn't get a civil word out of him for weeks."

"Yeah, whatever he said!" Twister agreed, not having the slightest idea what the words "taciturn" and "civil" were. "He was crazy sad. And drank a lot. And wouldn't leave Reggie and I _alone."_

"God, finally!" Ell smacked the table in her excitement, and Twister jumped. "I mean, you did, right? Get together? Oh my god, you guys were going to give me a heart attack." She grinned at Reggie. "Oh yeah. And sorry for making you think I was with Twister. 'Cuz that totally was not happening. At all."

Reggie grinned back, far happier with their current conversation topic. "Oh shut up. It was a logical conclusion. Until he explained." She turned her smile on Twister, her heart in her eyes. "He was…most persuasive."

Ell's eyebrows quirked, and she glanced over at Sam who made making gagging motions. She giggled. In this relationship, at least, everything was as it should be. Relationship. _Henrik._

Gasping, she splayed her hands out on the table, gaining everyone's attention. "Guys. Guys. One more thing. This is very important. I have learned my lesson of not telling anybody anything, and have decided to get this out of the way before any other insane shit goes down. Ok. So. I'm back from Iceland. Someone came with me."

Twister and Sam looked at each other, strangely not surprised. Reggie almost remarked on the eerie male solidarity Twist and Sam seemed to have spontaneously developed, but could tell this was important to Ell, so she decided to let it do. For now.

"Ok, so it's mostly a joke, and I'm really not ok with it, but his name is Henrik. And he is my self-styled fiancé. My father made me take him back with me, and I don't know how to get rid of him. And he thinks that he's going to marry me! I do _not_ know what to do."

Twister and Reggie stared at her in shock. They had figured crazy things had happened to her over the break (why else would she have not even sent an email?) but they had not expected this.

"Ahh. Hmm. Well, this certainly throws a wrench into our Get-Ell-And-Otto-Back-Together plan." Reggie and Twister transferred their disbelief onto Sam.

"We had a Get-Ell-And-Otto-Back-Together plan?" Twister asked, wondering why on earth no one ever told him anything. He had proven he was good at secrets!

"I'll say. This could very well be the final straw for Otto…_unless_ we find a way to work his competitive nature…Ell, is Henrik athletic?"

"Uh no, he's…no he's not, but Reggie, that's not the point-"

Sam looked excited. "Ok, this could maybe work. We just have to really accentuate Ell's misery – Don't look at me like that, Ell, you've already said this is against your will- and the fact that you still like Otto…" He trailed off, looking at Ell suggestively. "You still like him, right?"

It took Ell a moment to find her voice. Everything had happened so fast; her being welcomed home with no real grievance against her, unloading all her secrets, and this plan to get her back with Otto. "That's not the issue here." Reggie and Sam looked like they were ready to argue, but Ell pushed on ahead. "Guys, it's not whether or not we still like each other, (although I'm fairly sure he doesn't) it's a matter of betrayal. I mean, I kept secrets from him, and although we basically were each other's dirty little secrets, I hurt him. I don't think going back is an option right now. Anyways, he seems to have moved on."

Twister shook his head. "Nuh uh, he tried and tried to but it didn't work and he's not with anyone right now. I would know."

Ell did not look reassured. She sighed. "Look, guys. Not right now, ok? I mean, I have to deal with the Henrik situation. I'm 18 and all, so I can't really be forced into anything, but he's here to make sure I 'behave' myself, and if I piss him off enough, I could be kicked out of the apartment."

Reggie leaned over and lightly punched her on the arm. "Cheer up, girl. Everything will be ok. We'll figure out something about your unwanted suitor. In the mean time…Otto hasn't gotten over you. No no, don't shake your head. He hasn't, and if worse comes to worst, you can always just crash at our house." She smiled wickedly. "And we can always just parade you in front of Otto until he snaps, pounces, and takes you back."

Ell snorted in spite of herself, while Twister and Sam made awkward faces. They supposed that girl talk was a return to normalcy, but really? In the lunch room? In front of them?

…_Pouncing?_

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Their stolen time was so precious that when they came together, they often forgot to be smart. Well, Reggie forgot. Twister didn't foray very often into the realms of intelligence. Regardless, could they be blamed? Their physical chemistry alone was staggering, and coupled with their mutual affection when they came together it was a blaze of hands and lips and gasps and sighs. Reggie hadn't known it could be like this; Twister now could never imagine anything less.

It was late afternoon and Twister had begged off chilling with Otto to help Reggie with the film supplemental of The 'Zine. It was a testament to Otto's distracted state that he didn't put things together, especially as Twister had taken to ducking out of study hall to assist Reggie as well. Alone. In a small closet. Needless to say, actual progress on the 'Zine had leveled off and the two were in the process of learning how to get double the work done in half the time.

Yet that was then, not now.

Reggie hummed as Twister's lips pressed against hers. She had known he was a considerate kisser, yet had not realized he could be passionate as well. She had also not realized that teeth and tongue could factor in kissing as well – she loved it when he nipped playfully at her lower lip, and he loved when she sucked his tongue into her mouth. Actually, he loved anything to do with her tongue, a fact Reggie discovered when she slowly licked along his bottom lip.

Twister shakily exhaled and gripped Reggie's shoulder. He retaliated by slowing the tempo of the kiss down, so that every touch felt magnified, every moment excruciating. He shifted so that he was now leaning over her, trapping her between his body and her bed. When he finally broke away from her, Reggie's eyes were glazed, and her arms were tightly woven around his neck, and they promptly tried to pull him back to her. Twister grinned and lowered his head, but this time it was to her neck. As Twister kissed, licked, and lightly bit a path from her collarbone to her ear, Reggie's death grip on his shoulders relaxed, and she sighed. Her fingers trailed through Twister's hair – his hat was lying on the floor somewhere – making a mess of his orange locks, but also making him moan in pleasure, especially when she tugged gently. She smiled, thinking that she had never seen Twister so eager to take off his hat before he realized how good this felt, but-_oh._

Reggie gasped as Twister's mouth found her ear, and sucked on her earlobe. She could feel her nipples harden against her bra when he breathed against her ear, and that caused her to sit bolt upright, pushing Twister onto the mattress as she did.

"Reggie what-?"

She shook her head, breathing heavily through her mouth. He lay sprawled against the bed, dazed and slightly flushed, and it only took a moment of staring down at him to come to her decision. Before he could say anything else, Reggie reached for the hem of her shirt, and in one movement pulled it over her head.

Twister's mouth went dry. His eyes immediately lowered to the flat plane of Reggie's stomach, hardly trusting himself to look up any further. He closed his eyes and moaned plaintively when she leaned over him.

"Twist? What's wrong?" Reggie found herself whispering even though no one would be home for hours. What on earth had just happened? A moment ago he was clearly as ready to continue as she was, but now he looked almost frightened. "Twist, are you ok?"

He nodded and rubbed her arms frenetically, yet kept his eyes closed. "I-I think so."

Reggie frowned. Then what the hell was his problem? Didn't he know…well, he probably didn't know how embarrassing this was for her, and how vulnerable she felt with her shirt off. Shame flooded her as she realized that her actions were making him uncomfortable. She tried to fight back her anger by telling herself that she was simply moving too fast, but it was a losing battle. Anyways, weren't teenage boys up for sexual actions at all times?

"Reggie…I thought you _liked_ me. Why are you torturing me?" Twister nearly wailed, eyes still screwed tightly shut. "Don't _you_ know how much I like you? How much I respect you? But then you go and take your shirt off! That makes it so hard!" He was blushing like a sun-ripened tomato now, and he let go of her shoulders to shield his face from her eyes.

Still leaning over him, Reggie froze. A small, dirty part of her mind wondered what exactly he meant by "it," but the usually rational part understood there was some correlation between taking off her shirt, and the level of respect he had for her. Wordlessly, she pulled away from him, turning away as she did. She hoped he would leave before she either started crying or went berserk.

"Reggie?" She felt him sit up behind her, and tensed when he put his hands on her shoulders. "Reggie, what's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," she announced in clipped, angry tones. "I'm sorry for making you think I'm a whore."

"_What?"_ Twister tried to turn her to face him, but she resisted. "What are you talking about?"

Reggie's anger halted as Twister spoke. He sounded angry. Why would he sound angry if he actually thought she was a whore? Come to think of it, why would he blush when he told her that? "You said…you said that when I took my shirt off you don't respect me anymore-"

"I didn't – I didn't meant _that…_" Twister sighed, and held her tightly, long arms wrapping around her frame, her back flush against his chest. He dipped his head so that he mumbled into her shoulder, yet she heard him anyways. "I didn't mean I don't respect _you_, just that…when you do really sexy stuff like that it's hard to respect your _body._ Like, I wanted to look at you _really badly_ but if I did that then I wouldn't be respecting _you_ anymore, and then you wouldn't like me, but I'd still be in love with you and-"

"Twist!" Reggie laughed breathily, all ire forgotten in his nonsensical confession. She shifted in his arms so that she faced him, and this time his eyes were open, if very, very focused on her face. He looked positively terrified, and Reggie couldn't help but smile. "Twister, I don't think it's disrespectful to look at _or_ touch my body. Not when I want you to."

Reggie stifled a giggle at the hopeful look in Twister's eyes. "Then…then do you want me to?"

Reggie smiled broadly as she leaned back, tugging at the hem of Twister's shirt. "Only if I can too."

For a moment, Twister could only stare at Reggie, hoping he hadn't gotten it all wrong. But the next moment found him yanking his shirt over his head, and the sinuous Reggie Rocket in his lap. The next found Reggie on her back, with an extremely zealous Mexican above her. It had taken only her assurance for Twister to throw his inhibitions to the wind, and within seconds his capable hands were skimming her stomach and cupping her breasts. Reggie flushed and gasped, and in the back of her head congratulated herself on wearing her one lacy bra – bought on an enforced shopping trip with Trish and Sherry – as it cradled her cleavage impressively.

Now that it was allowed, Twister couldn't stop staring at her. He realized he might have been a bit silly before, seeing as how he'd seen her in a multitude of swim wear throughout their entire lives, but the intimacy of the situation changed everything. His eyes traced the subtle curve of her waist, and the not as subtle swell of her breasts. His breath came out in a rush as he felt her hands along his shoulders, trailing down to his chest. He was confused when she cupped his pecs, but looking down at her wicked grin he figured it out – she was mimicking his actions. Smirking back at her he massaged her breasts, smug when she could not appropriately mirror his actions. Yet Reggie was not to be outdone. Twister's grin faded when her fingers circled his nipples, and began to lightly rub them. He shuddered when she grew more daring, tweaking and flicking at the hardened nubs. It was as if his nipples were directly connected to his groin; he could feel the growing sparks of pleasure there with every passing moment. She finally pinched hard enough to offset the intense pleasure, and he realized his hands had stilled during her explorations. This would not do. He could see the hook of her bra, cradled in between the valley of her breasts. Rolling onto his back, he pulled her on top of him, causing her to shriek and almost fall off the bed. Oh well, he would work on that next time. Before she could attack him again, he reached up and unhooked the clasp with a minimum of trial time, killing Reggie's giggles as she straddled him. He pulled her bra down her shoulders, locking eyes with her the entire time. He refused to examine his conquest until he dropped the bra next to his hat. He looked down.

The moment Twister looked at her breasts, his boundless energy and passion came together and all hope for a moderate young man was lost. Reggie had barely adjusted to her new position straddling him (although she certainly was _not_ complaining) before Twister vaulted upwards so that they were now almost face-to-face, held close by his arm around her back. Instinctively, his mouth wrapped around a nipple, while the other was heartily attended to by his unoccupied hand. Reggie couldn't help it and moaned aloud. God, how did he know how to do this? Was he just guessing? And doing this well? All further thought was knocked out of her head by the feel of his tongue swirling around her nipple, and unconsciously she began to breath heavily. Seductive heat pooled in her lower stomach, and without meaning to she ground her hips against his, causing him to squeeze her other breast and moan against her nipple. Reggie continued to move, digging against the hard length in his pants. He thrust up against her, reactively, quickly finding and accelerating her rhythm. Reggie moaned again, as her hands played across his shoulders, and dipped down as low as they could to stroke his stomach. He was so hard now, she could distinctly feel him, even through the barriers of both their pants. For a wild, delicious moment, she wondered what it would feel like, rubbing up against her without any barriers. She exhaled raggedly, drowning in the imagined pleasure. Yet the next intake of breath pushed away the fantasy – they couldn't have sex. Not now, not like this. No matter how good this felt.

"Twist…" Although to be totally honest, the breathy sigh probably wasn't helping her – or his – resolve of chastity.

"Yeah?" His voice was low, husky, and slightly accented, and Reggie could practically feel her womb pull towards him in anticipation.

"We should probably, um. You know." He thrust up and she rocked against him hard, completely undermining her words. His lips left her breasts and they came back to hers, however, decreasing the amount of raw pleasure wreaking havoc on Reggie's sensibilities. It was somehow so like Twister, to understand the implicit while totally missing the explicit. They held each other for a long time, kissing gently, ignoring the siren call to heat matters back up. They continued to kiss long after the thrusting tapered off, and the light from the drying sun disappeared entirely. Only when Twister was in imminent danger of discovery – Otto had a habit of disregarding his sister's privacy, even now – did they stop.

Yet even after Twister re-dressed himself (hat and all) he couldn't find it in him to leave her quite yet. So they whiled away more stolen time. They lay together on her bed, entangled in each other's arms, softly tracing patterns on bare limbs. They whispered together, and rubbed noses, and smiled and laughed at nothings. Eventually the conversation wound itself around to Twister's 'Zine supplemental, which was fortunate as Otto returned home not two minutes after. The slamming door downstairs ripped them from their pleasurable haze, and they vaulted off the bed, giggling softly at the squeaking noise it made. They grabbed up their materials as Otto ran up the stairs, and had just assumed an air of innocence, hard work, and normalcy (Reggie even managed a scowl in Twister's general direction) when he burst in the door.

"Geez Reg. Can't you do work in the living room like a normal person? If it hadn't been for your shoes at the door, I wouldn't have even known you were home."

"Um, no? All my 'Zine stuff is in my room. Why the hell would I cart it downstairs just to work with _Twister?_ No offense, Twist."

"Ugh, whatever. Dinner's downstairs…Raymundo and Tito sent it over from the Shack. I dunno' if we have enough for Twist tho." He turned and left, muttering something that sounded suspiciously like _I should have known. I wondered why they sent over fish taquitos…_

After the door shut firmly behind him, Twister leaned in and gave Reggie one last kiss before they followed Otto downstairs. Compared to the others earlier it was simple and chaste, yet it was enough to make his little Twister stir in his pants. Not that he was complaining, but he thought it was all Reggie's fault – she was too beautiful, and her lips were just too wonderful for his anatomy to ignore. He broke the kiss when her fingers cupped his cheek so that he could stare into her eyes.

Twister was not an intellectually intelligent man, although he was an emotional secure one. His time with the Rocket siblings had trained him to be very sensitive and adept at handing other's emotions, and his parents had taught him to be comfortable with his own. So when he looked into Reggie's eyes, every scrap of his own love was shining through his, and Reggie could not help but be affected. He leaned forward to rest his forehead on hers, and took her questing hand in his own.

"_Te amo, Regina."_

Reggie closed her eyes and concentrated on everything but her chaotic emotions and ragged breath; she focused on the bump of their noses, and the mingling of their breath. Everything felt so beautiful and good that it almost hurt. Eventually, she found her voice and she whispered hoarsely.

"Yeah. Me too."

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***Squees* Oh man. So there was a longish wait for this, but I hope I made up for it…and to those (if any) who are reading my Avatar fic, THIS is why I haven't updated that again. Sigh. Too focused on Twister/Reggie loving to get my shit done…**

**But now, serious question. If it is answered, it could seriously affect the nature/ratio of mad lovin' scenes – how the hell am I doing? Am I too descriptive without focusing enough on the emotions? What do you think makes a good love scene? Pleeeeeaaassseeee help me out, 'cuz I feel like I'm crap at writing love scenes. And if I get responses, then I'll be able to formulate better smexy bits, and then we'll all be happy, believe me. **

**So help me out guys! Review! (Or pm me, I'm totally flexible). Thank you so much!**


	14. Ch13: Halfbaked Plans and Movie Moments

**I do not own Rocket Power. Huh. Imagine that :p**

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**Chapter 13: Of Awkward First Dates, Unexpected Complications, and Fisticuffs.**

**(_"Dun dun dun dun dun dun mystery guyyyy mystery guyyy, saving the day with __awkward spying techniques...__"__)_**

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"So...you guys want to go on a date with me?"

All three of her friends stared back at her in abject confusion. Twister even dropped his spoon before shooting a terrified glance over at Reggie. No. Not _this_ again.

"And by date, I mean go to the movies. And by with me, I mean to offset the awkwardness that is Henrik demanding an American date this weekend. So you guys should all come...so that this isn't really a date."

Sam smirked. Twister still looked concerned. Reggie looked thoughtful. Ell continued looking like she had just discovered - and was firmly clinging to - the end of her rope.

"Please? It's not even a romantic movie – I made sure to find an action flick..."

Sam took pity on the poor girl. Otherwise, who knew where her pleading would end? "Well, Sherry and I _were_ planning on catching a movie this weekend..." Ell turned to him, and looked at him as if an embrace was imminent. Reggie shot Twister a glance, and by some minor miracle, he understood it.

"Yeah, and helping you out with this is a great cover for Reggie and I to go on a date! Thanks dude!" Smiling hugely, Twister leaned over and (gently) slapped Ell on the back. Ell and Reggie shared a wry smile. It was a wonder, really, how Twister had been able to keep his relationship with Reggie a secret all this time. Still, they would take what they would get.

"And this is a _perfect_ opportunity to implement the beginning stages of Operation: Get-Ell-And-Otto-Back-Together!" Sam excitedly clunked his silverware onto the lunchroom table. "Twister, you think you can get him to the movie theatre on time?"

Twister shot a glance at Ell, not necessarily noticing how uncomfortable she looked, but definitely picking up on the emphatic _no's_ she was mouthing. The corresponding hand gestures clinched it. "I'm not so sure Ell wants him there, Squid..."

Reggie gripped Ell's hands and held them down under the table. It was just in time, too, because Otto had just walked up to the table.

"Hey guys." He glanced at his sister and Sam, but very carefully did not look at Ell. He had to fight against the double-take when he realized his sister was effectively holding Ell's hands under the table, however. "Reggie, Sam. Hey Twist, let's eat lunch over here today. Sorry I was a little late. Had some business with Emma. You coming?" Then, without waiting for his friend, he walked off at a suspiciously empty table and sat. His glower could be felt several tables away.

With a small shrug and a meaningful glance at Reggie, Twister got up to tend to his best bro. He could get the specifics from Reggie later

Reggie felt Ell pull her hands away, largely to shield her face. "See? I told you he was over me," she mumbled into her hands. "Also, he's being a complete _dick._ I'm sorry Sam. I don't think your plan is going anywhere."

Sam _growled._ "No! Don't you see? He's so upset he can't even think straight! Sure, maybe he was with Emma, but can't you see how angry he is? He _hates_ that girl. Largely because she is annoying and _not you." _Sam thought back to his Idiocy Classes Theory. Ell and Otto were racing towards that A again, although he supposed liking Otto in the first place would automatically garner Ell a "passing" grade for the rest of time...

"Decided. Rocket boy is getting too annoying for words. You don't see him at home – this is the worst he's ever been! All moody and cocky and doesn't listen to a word we say – we have _got_ to fix this."

Ell looked over at Reggie, and breathed deeply. "It's ok. Whatever happens will happen. I mean, I'm a big girl. I can take it." She managed a little smile before continuing. "But will you guys at least go to the movies with me? Because an enforced date with Henrik...I don't think I can take that."

Reggie and Sam nodded firmly. They could do that much at least. And like Twister had said – it was a great covert opportunity for a date!

"Oh, and um..._he_ doesn't know about Henrik, does he?"

Suddenly, neither Sam nor Reggie could meet Ell's eyes.

"About that..."

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"Halfway across the lunch room, Otto Rocket suddenly pounded his fists down on the table. "What the _fuck?!"_

_ "_Keep it down, man! Do you want them to hear us?"

Otto simmered, his mounting rage written all over his face. "You can't be _serious-"_

Twister nodded emphatically, struggling not to glance over at his other friends. "Yeah. Apparently her dad got freaked out about seeing her with another boy... well, you. So he sent this guy back with her. From what I can tell she hates him, and is super pissed about all of this, but she can't get rid of him or her dad will tell the cops she's been living illegally in her aunt's apartment all year. It's a real bad situation, Otto-man. Especially when she's still hung up on-"

Otto hit the table again, drawing looks from most of the tables in the immediate vicinity. "I don't care. _I don't give a flying fuck,_ ok? She can do whatever she wants to, it has _nothing_ to do with me!" He abruptly stood up to leave, but immediately sat back down. "What's his name?" He spoke through gritted teeth, as if not fully forming the words would hide his interest.

Twister scratched his head. "Henry? Or something like that...I mean, she just told us all of this the other day-"

"How old is he?"

"I dunno, man. Not in high school, so maybe older?"

"Is he a shoob?"

This, Twister could answer confidently. "Yes. Absolutely. For sure, man."

Otto leaned back, viciously unhappy, yet feeling oddly victorious. "He sounds like a loser. Well, good for her. He probably likes all her _music_ things, and they'll probably get along great." He stood to leave again, and was only stopped by Twister suddenly grabbing his arm. "What the hell, Twist?"

It took Twister a moment to find his words, but when he found them, they flowed. "Look, Otto. That's not fair, and you know it. She's really sad. _Really really really _sad. She feels just like you, ok? And you don't have to deal with family pressure, so maybe even worse! Please stop being mean to her when you really just want to say that you miss her. It makes us all really upset."

Otto stared straight ahead of him so that he didn't have to deal with the truth behind his best bro's eyes and his words. "I don't miss her. I don't miss her at all. And she doesn't want _me_, so it has nothing to do with me."

Twister's brows knitted. Yet he couldn't come right out and _tell_ Otto that Ell still liked him...he suspected that would break all sorts of girly codes that Twister knew existed, but didn't quite know what they were. "What are you talking about? If she doesn't want you, then who does she want?"

"I dunno. That Henry guy, I guess."

Now Twister stood up as well so he could look Otto in the eye. "Wanna' _bet? _She hates him! And...and _I can prove it._"

Otto pulled his wrist away from Twister's grasp, but didn't move away. "Go on..."

"Well, a bunch of us are going to the movies this weekend..."

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Reggie couldn't remember the last time she'd done something this awkward. Actually, she could - it was probably the time she and Twister had hidden in the girl's bathroom to hide from the most persistent of his fangirls...but even then, there had been a smidgeon of hilarity and a frisson of sexual tension between them, and so it was overall a more positive experience than this. This, acting as an obscenely obvious third-wheel on Ell's Date From Hell, had absolutely no positives involved.

She blamed Sam. He had clearly forgotten about his girlfriend's obsession with drama, and after having told Sherry all about the plan, the plan had changed. Now, she and Sam were acting as "covert ops" and were to be spying on the group the entire time. Both Sam and Reggie had attempted to argue with Sherry that the purpose was to _save_ Ell, not _spy_ on Ell (both privately agreeing that if there was to be a spy in this equation, he had better be 5'10", with green eyes and dreadlocks). Yet she was not to be moved. So, until Twister got here with Rocket-Boy, Reggie was stuck trying to make awkward conversation with Ell's suitor, who clearly did not want her to be here.

"Ahh, and where is your date, Reggie?"

Reggie did her very best not to glare at Henrik, as Ell was doing so already. "Honestly? I have no idea. He was supposed to be here 10 minutes ago..." She drifted off, trying to look jilted. In truth, she was getting a little nervous. If neither boy showed up, all this would be for an awkward nothing – although Ell kept shooting her thankful glances, nonetheless. Even thought she was practically standing in between them, Henrik still kept trying to flirt with Ell. It was mostly physical; a shrugged off hand on her shoulder, an attempt to rest a hand on her lower back, and once, he even tried to gently brush his fingertips against her face. Ell's reaction had been impressive, and had put Reggie in mind of both limbo competitions and the Matrix. That girl was surprisingly bendy...

"Hey you guys! Sorry I'm late...I had to drop a friend off...at the screen next door." Reggie tried not to cringe. Love the boy as she did, there was no subtlety in Twister. Well, at least he hadn't announced to all and sundry that Otto was here. Regardless, she was just grateful that Twister was finally here, and she wouldn't have to deal with the simmering undertones alone.

"Hey Twist." Reggie turned and smiled up at him, not brave enough to take his hand or give him a hug when her brother could see, even if he'd been told they were pretending to date to help Ell out. She hoped her smile would tell Twister how happy she was he was here. "We were just about to go in without you!"

Henrik nodded absently at Twister, recognizing that the brains of this operation did not reside in his noggin. Ell was obviously trying to avoid him, and he had had just about enough of that. Well, there was still a little time before the movie began...without saying a word to either of the Americans, he grabbed Ell's arm and dragged her off towards the abandoned end of the theatre, where, due to the time of day, no movies were being shown. Ell shot a panicked look towards her friends, but Twister stopped Reggie from following. Ell caught him mouth the word "Otto" before she had to turn herself around, but that didn't make any sense. Why would Otto have anything to do with Henrik's sudden aggression? A quick glance showed that he was annoyed. Well, so was she! How dare he drag her away like this? She needed to make this clear to him, that _she did not belong to him. _Hopefully this time he would get the picture.

"What is _wrong_ with you?! Why are you acting like an abusive _father?" _Maybe, just maybe, if she drove the point home, he'd stop acting like a 5-year-old.

_"__Why are you inviting other people to our date?" _

Of course he would disregard her request (well, order) that they speak in English. What a jerk. "Why are you babbling like an infant? I told you what language I'll speak. Try again."

Henrik exhaled angrily. "Why are they here?"

Ell shrugged, but couldn't hide the angry expression on her face. "They're on a date. And they're my friends. What's the problem?"

"The problem is that I wanted to be alone with you! Like we should be. Like as is normal."

Ell's eyes narrowed. "Well. It's too bad for you then, that I have _no desire_ to be alone with you. Don't you get it, Henrik? _I don't like you._ Shall I say it slower, so that you'll maybe understand it? _I. Don't. Like. You._ And I'm never going to. Give it _up_ already!"

Henrik scowled, marring his otherwise attractive face. "Is this because of that boy your father met? The one who left you?"

Ell stilled. _Oh no. Oh _no_ he didn't..._

_ "_You must forget him. He does not care about you, it is so obvious. Otherwise you would not be here with me, yes? So he is not worth it. And I am."

Ell said nothing, but flexed her fingers tellingly. It would be so easy to clench her fists and pummel him. Just one good hit across the face...

"I'm your best friend from childhood, yes? I know all your history and you, no matter how odd you are acting now. And I know all about the bad parts too, like your mother, and Einar-"

Her hand flew forward, making contact with his face and surprising them both. Yet Ell overcame her surprise first, helped by her blind fury. So as Henrik put a hand to the red blotch on his face, Ell let him have it. "_How...dare...you?_ You know nothing about Otto, so I let you talk...I don't care enough about you to even correct you, but I can tell you this now: you know nothing about it. And it should be nothing to you whether I care for him or he cares for me, because there is no hope for you, there will never _be_ hope for you, whether or not he likes me back. But I swear to god, Henrik. If you _ever_ mention Einar to me like that again...like he's some _mistake_ I made when I was a child...I will _end_ this little game. I will fucking live on the _streets_ before I look you in the face again. Am I clear?"

Henrik sputtered, but Ell, in her dramatic, terrifying fury, would have none of it. "_Am I clear?"_

Henrik's answer was a piercing look that Ell couldn't quite identify, as it was an uncomfortable amalgam of anger, spite, and sympathy. He didn't leave her much time to decipher it, however, as a moment later he turned away from her, and stalked out of the movie theatre. This was fortunate, as the moment he was out of earshot, Ell's veneer of rage broke down, and the sorrow came. Abandoning Reggie and Twister to their movie, Ell ran into an empty theatre, hoping no one would come and see her cry.

It was unfortunate, then, that someone had witnessed the entire exchange.

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Otto was not a man who wasted much time in thought. He was a man of action, and as such, did not normally question his body when it was time to move. This, however, was an occasion when he simply did not understand what his body was doing. For as soon as he realized Ell was crying, he had abandoned his hiding place and was halfway to the door, even as he questioned what the hell his feet thought they were doing. This line of questioning continued as his hands gripped the door handle, and his arms pulled it open. It shouldn't matter that Ell didn't like that shoob. What should matter was that he hated her, and that there was some Einar person in the picture, and they weren't together anymore, so why was he searching for her in the pitch black of the empty movie theatre? These questions and variations upon those themes continued until his eyes adjusted, and he saw her, hugging herself in the darkness. They continued until he wrapped his arms around her, and knew: it didn't matter what should or shouldn't be. No matter how much he tried to deny it, there was a part of him that simply felt better around her, and the need to comfort her was overwhelming. So he held her back to his chest, his forehead against the nape of her neck, and let her cry. And when she whispered his name in the darkness, not a question at all but knowing – somehow - that it was him, he simply tightened her arms around her, and placed a ghost of a kiss on her shoulder.

He stayed with her until the tears stopped, and through the whispered confessions, as well. She was sorry. She didn't know how to explain her past, so she never tried. She hadn't realized it would mean so much to him...but she would explain. Anything he wanted. She hadn't thought he'd mean this much to her, and she had been a little afraid – was afraid now – of why that was. So please don't hate her, anymore. Please at least go back to square 1, let them start over...

Her words were like a drug, separating his mind and body so that when he realized he was turning her around his mind was no longer protesting. Slowly, he leaned forward on his toes to brush his lips against her forehead. She had stilled against him, barely breathing, and his breath sounded too loud in the darkness. Likewise, his heart was pounding like a drum, cutting through the silence and sparking an irrational fear that they would be caught. Yet his limbs wouldn't move as quickly as he wanted them to, his arms brushing oh so slowly up to her shoulders, where only just now were his fingers exerting pressure, pulling her closer to him-

Their only warning was a slight hitch as the door opened. "Ell? Are you in here?" Shaken, he let her go and stepped back into the darkness, out of range of the light pouring in through the now-open door. Ell was caught in the light and blinked, and Otto's heart throbbed, even as his hands clenched. He had been so close to kissing her...mistake as it might be. He wasn't even sure anymore...

"Ahh, yeah. Yeah. I'm coming, Reg-" Taking a moment to rub her face, she whispered in Otto's general direction, "I'm sorry, and..._thank you."_ Then, she was gone, leaving Otto alone in the darkness with his thoughts.

_Do I forgive her? What do I want?_

_M__ost importantly,_ _how do I get it?_

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**So...it's been a while. For whatever reason, the RP muse hijacked me while at work today, and here we are...It's not exactly Reggie and Twister lovin', but I'm starting to get inspired for some Otto and Ell lovin', so we'll see how that goes. Writing Otto with some depth is kind of odd, but I suck as an action writer, so there is that. Hopefully you enjoyed it! (Hiiiii everybody!)**

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**If you somehow stumbled on here by means of Soul Eater, rest assured I am hard at work on Day 8 of Caprice, and have about 4.5k done on the prize one-shot. So no worries. It's coming!**


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